


Even in space, you need to think of your 401k plan

by NevaRYadL



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alien Jack Morrison, Background Genji Shimada/Tekhartha Zenyatta/Lucio Corriea Dos Santos, Background Hana Song/Brigitte Lindholm, Background Jesse McCree/Hanzo Shimada, Background Reinhardt WIlhelm/Torbjorn Lindholm/Ingrid Lindholm, Background Reinhardt Wilhelm/Ana Amari, Background Satya Vaswani/Fareeha Amari/Sombra, Blood and Gore, Canon-Typical Violence, Fingering, M/M, Mentioned suicidal thoughts and actions, Mild Language, Oral Sex, Penetrative Sex, Space AU, Strap-Ons, Trans Reaper | Gabriel Reyes, Trans Soldier: 76 | Jack Morrison, mentioned body horror
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-11
Updated: 2018-08-15
Packaged: 2019-06-26 02:36:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 25,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15653997
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NevaRYadL/pseuds/NevaRYadL
Summary: My piece for the 2018 reaper76 big bang for tumblr!Incest shippers do not touch my shit, fuck off you nasty fucks





	1. Even in space, your retirement fund can hear you scream at it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Officer Gabriel Reyes is just trying to do right, save up to retire, and be with his husband. But even the last leg of a journey  
> can have it’s rough patches.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My piece for the reaper76 big bang over on tumblr!
> 
> Check out this absolutely bitching artwork for this! -> http://ichicome.tumblr.com/post/176896525972/reyes-hey-hey-hey-guess-who-had-the-pleasure-of

Officer Gabriel Reyes, liked to think that some of the things in his life happened simply because he had a habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time and chalked up the often… ‘loud’, ‘messy’ and sometimes ‘gory’, results as being a badass that could handle whatever his shit luck threw at him. It was how he built his reputation as an officer in these few past years after all, how he got half the shit done that normal people would pale and say could not be done. It was how he had become known as a man that could get things done and done for good.

But it also led to shit like this happening.

Gabriel breathed out through his nose to try and keep himself from panting as he ran down yet another nondescript metal corridor. The bottoms of his heavy boots smacked the ground with troubling ‘thunks’ as he tried to put distance between himself and the severn heavily armed mercs running after him. Thankfully, since this was neither his, nor the mercs ship, they were not firing, also because this particular space faring vessel was a piece of shit. Older clunkers like the one that they were fighting on had a tendency to do rather lethal things when they were shot with modern weaponry like the mercs were armed with to the teeth. Plasma of all his luck instead of heat clips like low budget mercs were normally armed with. So until they managed to find themselves in a reinforced room, Gabriel was currently safe from being popped in the back with a hot load of plasma. That however, did not mean that they could not swarm him and stab at him with knives like Gabriel knew most mercs were armed with for just such an occasion.

Gabriel cursed himself for not packing his own standard issue military energy knife, having left it in the armory by accident because a certain someone was distracting him when they were checking out their gear before the trip. Now Gabriel just had his own modified plasma shotguns and with the holes they punched through even reinforced ships, there was not a chance in hell that he could fire unless he was sure that a merc was taking all of the brunt of the shot. Gabriel did not feel like getting spaced if anything went astray and punched through the pathetic walls of this old merchant ship clunker. Being spaced once was enough for him, thank you. And as much as Gabriel wanted to complain, he had to remind himself that old merchant ships were never made for heavy combat… despite the frequency of raids on them, surprisingly.

“This is Reyes, where’s my team?!” Gabriel hissed over his comms.

“Still takin’ out mercs on the lower levels,” McCree muttered low, probably trying to sneak up on said mercs.

“Still evacuating civilians on the upper floors and killing mercs,” Genji responded, the sound of his sword swiping and slicing through flesh and armor leaking through the slight static of his voice.

“Jack?” Gabriel asked, only to receive radio silence. Fucking perfect.

Gabriel hooked a corner and hoped to find another hallway for him to run down. Instead, however, Gabriel found a fucking dead end in what looked like a gutted storage room, only a few rusty racks and some plastic boxes all that was left. Nowhere to go and a gaggle of fucking mercs about to corner him alone in this dead end. Fucking perfect, fucking great. Turning around, Gabriel was faced with the first merc to catch up with him, followed quickly by their friends. With a heavy scowl, Gabriel lifted his arms and merely stared down the mercs that were gathering around him.

“Jaaaaacccckkkkk,” Gabriel muttered before throwing a quick look at his wrist and the metal band almost obscured by the sleeve of his hoodie. The face was grey for now but that could change quickly. Fuck him.

“Careful, don’t give this guy an inch, these Overwatch folks are bad news, even on their own,” One merc gruffed out.

“Should blast these guys, but can’t put a hole in this cheap ass merchant ship,” Another merc muttered.

“Not if you put it flat against his chest and set it on low, the plasma will cook his organs and just fucking kill him!”

Well shit, looked like Gabriel was in it now. Gabriel gritted his teeth and tried to think of how to get out of this mess. Ten heavily armed mercs, though their guns were shit because everyone was too scared of accidentally shooting aray and spacing everyone. But they were still armed better than he was and probably had something else to try and kill him with. Shit, shit shit-

Something rattled in the ceiling above them. A familiar and soft chittering escaped from the cracks in the material and Gabriel breathed a sigh of relief.

“Just gut the bastard!” A merc lurched forward and grabbed one of his arms, another stepping up to grab his other arm. But still Gabriel was not tense or afraid of anything, because there was still something walking around in the ceiling. Someone that he knew. The sound of talons and claws moving softly stopped and a crack in the material was pried open further and Gabriel saw a glimmer of black-blue scales start slipping through.

“I wouldn’t if I were you,” Gabriel grinned as he watch as a long spined tail drop down from a crack in the ceiling.

“Oh, yeah, why’s that?” A merc asked.

One of the mercs closer to the door missed the tail dropping down onto his shoulder, so loosely starting to coil around his neck that he would never realize it what was happening until it was too late.

“My backup wouldn’t like that,” Gabriel smirked.

The merc that had Jack’s tail slowly wrapping like a noose around his neck started to screaming when Jack’s tail snapped tight, getting cut off when air could not make it past the tail noose around his throat. The merc was yanked completely off the ground and yanked up into the ceiling, the sounds of a struggle only present for a moment before it went silent. The other mercs quickly lost focused, turning their attention and guns towards the hole in the ceiling where their friend had disappeared through, holding their breaths to try and hear for them. They watched and waited until… their friend dropped down through the hole again, landing in a gory mess on the ground, shredded by talons and claws and fangs. The mercs yelled, nearly jumping out of their skins.

Gabriel took advantage of the sudden chaos and yanked himself free of the two mercs holding him, driving his elbow into the face of one and punching the other before ripping the knife from the belt of the one he elbowed that was clutching their broken nose and stabbing them dead center of the chest and then jerking to the side to slash the throat of the other. The blood in the air set his nerves alight but he ignored it and focused on surviving in the here and now. Three mercs down, seven to go. Gabriel took the knife and tackled one that was trying to get sights on Jack, repeatedly stabbing through a slit in their armor in their side, probably making mincemeat out of their kidneys before heaving them up and tossing them aside. Six more.

Jack’s tail came down from the ceiling caught another merc, but instead of dragging them screaming and flailing into the ceiling, he tossed them hard and back first into a steel beam. Needless to say, with Jack’s strength and the strength of the steel, the merc dropped dead to the ground in a crumpled heap. Five more. Gabriel faced down another merc that had their gun aimed at his face, wanting to kill him but also still not wanting to risk putting a hole through a flimsy wall and spacing the lot of them. A knife against a gun, if only the odds were in the merc’s favor. Gabriel made quick work of them with two quick steps and a precision stab to their throat. Four more.

A heavy thump alerted Gabriel and the four remaining mercs that Jack had finally joined the party instead of hanging out in the ceiling. Gabriel casted a glance and saw Jack unfolding from where he had fallen in a tight ball, tail unfurling and standing to his full height. With the lowlights of the alert mode of the ship, Jack’s bioluminescence was glowing brightly, bright blue stripes along his visible skin, talons and claws, spines and eyes as he took an offensive stance. 

“What the fuck is that!?”

Jack let out a shrieking howl, baring sharp fangs before pouncing on a merc, said doomed soul screaming bloody terror as they flailed around and tried to get Jack off of them. Three more. Gabriel quickly dispatched another, disarming them first and throwing the gun aside before ending their life with his stolen knife. Two more. Jack jumped from the merc he had been perched on, letting them drop dead to the ground before landing on another, clawing at their armor and shredding it and then flesh. One more.

“What the fuck!? WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT THING?!” The last marc wailed, shaking as they fell to the ground and tried to scoot away from the two of them. Hit a wall, poor bastard.

“My husband,” Gabriel snapped, “And you mercs and pirates really should think twice before raiding ships in Overwatch’s protection.”

A quick flick of his wrist sent the borrowed knife he had been using into their neck, ending their life.

* * *

When Jack and Gabriel found Genji and Jesse on one of the upper levels of the ship, the two were chatting with some of the merchants that were slowly coming back into their ship. In a situation like this had been, where a firefight would have been deadly on the merchant’s ship, they had evacuated everyone off of the merchant’s ship. Overwatch would have had choice words to say about them losing the merchant ship in their borders to a stray shot when they had been debriefed beforehand. Thankfully it had not come to that.

As they got closer, Gabriel saw the cocky little smirk on Jesse’s face and the swagger in his pose. Gabriel just knew that his boys would get the job done like they always did. A proud smirk pulled at Gabriel’s lips as he stepped closer.

“And man, they really didn’t want to blow holes in your ship,” Jesse laughed to a merchant, likely the head of this ship based on the cleaner suit and the shiny bit of metal pinned to their chest. “Made the job easy as pie.”

“Thank goodness we didn’t run into those drugged up raiders, or even Talon,” The merchant sighed with relief, “They would have spaced us all on principle or if they were high enough. I was surprised when they attacked us while we were following the route of Overwatch patrols. My thanks again to Overwatch for saving us.”

“Anytime,” Jesse grinned, tipping his hat all gentlemen like.

“Gabe, I see Jack found you,” Genji said as Gabriel joined them. “Which means you lived.”

“Don’t sound so disappointed, Genji,” Gabriel joked, nudging Genji’s side playfully, “Everyone accounted for?”

“Yep and no injuries either,” The merchant smiled, “You Overwatch people are just as good as branded.”

“Glad to be of service. A clean up crew should be by shortly to take care of what’s left of the mercs. Hopefully this will also keep the raiders, merc and other filth off of you for awhile, at least.” Gabriel said.

“Thanks again, we don’t know what we would have done without you.”

* * *

As it was after every mission, the debrief after a fight was still long and agonizing. Overwatch wanted every bullet, every injury, every death, accounted for. Hours and hours of filing paperwork on holopads and meetings after missions that often hardly lasted an hour. Gabriel always hated them, but knew they were necessary for operations to run smoothly and make sure that there was as little underhanded shit that there could be. It prevented things like… like… before happening again. Still, Gabriel wished it was not so tear jerkingly boring as it was. At least they could do paperwork together, so that meant eating together and hashing out how many bullets were shot between the four of them.

“Not that anyone used bullets other than Jesse,” Gabriel snorted as they worked. Jesse had just finished counting the rounds, putting the emptied thermal clips on the table so they could spot his math.

“At least I didn’t put any holes through that crappy ship hull,” Jesse retorted, frowning at his holopad. Probably getting lost in the endless lines that just seemed to repeat themselves. “Man, those two bit mercs were real scared of accidentally spacin’ us.”

“Because getting spaced is a rather miserable way to go,” Genji said, trying to swipe part of Jesse’s meal only for a metal fork to ‘thack’ his fingers, thankfully the metal ones.

“Finish your paperwork, kids,” Gabriel sighed, getting to indignant ‘aw Gabe!’s as the two men grudgingly went back to filing said paperwork out.

With the two distracted, Gabriel’s eyes slid over to Jack sitting next to him. Jack was hunched over his work, brow furled in concentration until the two scars that cut across his face pulled at the skin and puckered with the furl. Jack’s tail was was currently wrapped around Gabriel’s calf, a comfort habit of his in their off time for… the longest time. Gabriel reached down and pet the coils around his leg, drawing a little rumble out of Jack’s chest and the softening of his brow and the minute tightening of the tail wrapped around his calf.

“Glad you don’t have to fill out those orders for your pulse rifle rounds?” Gabriel asked Jack.

“Kinda… I got a template to fill those out now but I still prefer to use it over my damn claws,” Jack gruffed. Said claws had been briefly scrubbed down to get the gore and other nasty stuff off of them.

“We should be doing planetside stuff for awhile after this, you know how those big wigs upstairs don’t like us out in space for too long. So you should be able to use your rifle again,” Gabriel said, reaching out to squeeze Jack’s shoulder.

“Hopefully,” Jack grumped.

“Tell you what, I can’t wait to be planetside again,” Jesse groaned, “Sick of bein’ on a ship…”

“Sick of being away from my brother, you mean,” Genji noted with a coy grin.

“Oh hush your buckets,” Jesse retorted.

Genji tossed his holo screen pen at Jesse with a snicker, but before it could escalate into a fight that would have ended in a messy food fight between the two, Gabriel shooed them away, telling them to do their work later but to fight elsewhere. The energetic souls that they were, excitedly ran off to undoubtedly take care of pent up energy by rough housing in the sparring room for a bit, where they could blissfully ignore their paperwork for a few hours. Gabriel knew they would probably get it done regardless, scrambling to do it as they docked probably, but get it done regardless.

“Kids these days,” Jack gruffed.

“I’d hardly call those two kids,” Gabriel chuckled back, “But they certainly got the energy.”

“I wish I still had that kind of energy,” Jack groaned before a yawn escaped him, fangs naturally fully extending as his jaws opened wide with the movement before slipping back to their nominal length when he closed his mouth quickly.

“Want to go lay down? We aren’t set to touch back down planetside until tomorrow evening.” Gabriel suggested. “We can finish off this red tape nonsense in the morning.”

“We really shouldn’t be feeling and acting this old just yet, Gabe,” Jack groaned, stretching until his joints popped. Gabriel heard the slight sound of Jack’s talons scraping the ground as his digitigrade legs and feet stretched out.

“I think the universe can forgive us, we’ve been through some shit,” Gabriel said, stretching himself before standing. Jack’s tail remained stubbornly wrapped around his calf as Gabriel held out a hand to help Jack up.

“...Yeah, we have, haven’t we Gabe?” Jack sighed before taking his hand.

* * *

Gabriel was used to the quarters on ships being painfully small and uncomfortable. Way back when, he had even thought himself used to it enough to even find the odd few ‘comfortable’ in comparison. Now that he was old? Now they were all extremely uncomfortable and Gabriel counted the days until he was planetside again. How anyone thought that those flat beds, thin and scratchy blankets and barely enough room to move quarters were a good idea was beyond him. The only saving grace from back then and now was that Jack and him were often put into double rooms and that meant minutely larger floor room and and minutely large cots.

“Tomorrow we’re in our own bed,” Jack groaned as he eased into the cot that they had been sharing after they had gotten showered and dressed for bed. The other cot was piled high with various things. They had not slept apart in years.

“With an actual mattress and actual blankets,” Gabriel said as he eased in down next to Jack. With their big frames they had to press close, something they never minded. They were snuggly couple.

“And a shower without a water limit,” Jack added on.

“That will be nice after a month out here.”

Their legs twined together comfortably, Jack’s tail wrapping around his leg again and Jack’s arms around around his waist. Gabriel wrapped his arms around Jack’s torso, pulling him closer until their noses were brushing. As the lights automatically dimmed, Jack’s bioluminescence picked up, glowing softly in the darkness of the room, still as lustrous and still as bright a sky blue when they were young. Gabriel reached out and rubbed a thumb along a large and blotchy glowing stripe along Jack’s shoulder, rubbing the smooth skin softly as Jack purred softly.

“You know, for claiming to be more closer to Earth reptiles, you sure have a few feline like traits,” Gabriel chuckled softly. It was something that he had said before and liked to tease Jack about.

“I’m cold blooded and need your warmth and I can’t help that my vocalization for pleasure sounds like purring,” Jack huffed. A familiar retort.

“Just teasing you, Jackie,” Gabriel smirked, kissing Jack’s cheek.

Jack huffed before tucking his head underneath Gabriel’s chin and curling that much tighter against him. Safe and sound, wrapped around each other, Gabriel’s fingers straying to idly rub at the spines along Jack’s back that slipped out the holes made for them in his shirt and a few stuck because Jack was too old to care much about them. Gabriel stroked Jack’s back until he started purring and chirping softly in his sleep, smirking at the sound. Safe and sound, wrapped around each other like back then.

Gabriel kissed the top of Jack’s head before relaxing himself, allowing himself to drift off into sleep.

* * *

Gabriel always liked being on the main flight deck when any space ship docked. There was just something comforting and beautiful about pulling through the atmosphere, transitioning from the speckled darkness of the endless void of space to the skies of whatever planet they were landing on. Landing back on earth was always a treat, watching the blacks fade to blues and punching through layers of clouds to see the sprawling metallic cities below.

Leaning on the console as Ana worked her magic in encouraging their ship down to the docks, Gabriel watched the ceiling of the building peeling open to allow them in.

“This is Overwatch docking bay, please identify yourself.”

“Overwatch docking bay, this is Captain Fareeha Amari,” Fareeha said from the captain’s seat as she did the bulk of the driving, “And the SV Hyacinth. Seeking permission to lock.”

“Verified. Welcome back, Hyacinth and crew. Docking bay five is free and open.”

“Takes your breath away everytime, huh?” Ana smirked sideways at Gabriel’s wistful expression as they descended to land.

“Everytime,” Gabriel smirked back.

As always, the ship moved fluidly underneath Ana’s and Fareeha’s skilled guiding hands as they coaxed her to touch down in their designated docking bay. Gabriel saw a few people skittering around on the walkways, people in prim and proper uniforms doing their duties for the day and a few getting ready to scrub the ship down so it could take off the next day with the next crew that was supposed to go out. Worked never ended for Overwatch these days, especially since her legalization.

“Everyone start grabbing their things and ready to unboard,” Fareeha announced over the speakers, “You know how the decontamination crews are about us lingering on the ships too long.”

“Don’t need that snippy conversation ever again,” Ana grumbled before pushing away from her console and standing. Gabriel turned to join her only to see Jack standing there, having come up behind them at one point during the landing, tail coiled around his and Gabriel’s bags.

“Making an old woman go and get her own bags, and here I thought you were a gentlemen, Jack,” Ana teased.

“I haven’t claimed to be a gentleman in a long time,” Jack snorted back. “‘Sides, you can take this time to message Reinhardt to meet you just past decontamination.”

Laughing, Ana playfully punched Jack’s shoulder as she passed to go down to the living quarters deck to grab her things. Chuckling, Gabriel took the offered bag off of Jack’s tail, landing a kiss on Jack’s smirk creased cheek before heading down to join the others waiting at the hatch. Genji and Jesse, ever eager, were already there with their bags and looked more than ready to get off the ship.

“I’d hardly call being on a spaceship with frequent stops something warranting cabin fever boys, slow down,” Gabriel chuckled.

“Hard mattresses, bad rations, cold showers, ‘nough said,” Jesse pointed out.

“Good point,” Gabriel laughed.

The last few bits of the docking process thankfully did not last long and the door finally opened to let them off the ship. With a crisp hiss, the doors finally unlatched and open, letting in the air on the base. Gabriel always found that no one really noticed how stagnant the air on spaceships were until one got off of them after an extended amount of time. Gabriel took in a grateful lungful of non-stagnant air until as they stepped through the doors to the waiting crew outside that would scrub the ship of anything it may have picked up while they were out.

“Welcome back everyone,” Angela smiled as they all piled out of the ship to make way for the cleaning crew. The twenty some odd people in the dark grey suits with the various scrubbing equipment quietly slipped past them to start their work and get it done quick before the next crew went out. “I heard the month went well for you.”

“Just standard work,” Ana said from the back of the group but quickly moving to take lead of it, playfully elbowing Gabriel and Jack both in the ribs on her way, “Seven raids, two hostage ship situations and one hostile life form that turned out to be just a very peeved non-human yelling at a human crew for landing on their home.”

“Any injuries that I need to know about?” Angel asked as she walked with the tired group as they went to deposit their stuff off at the armory and their finished holopads with their finished mission debriefings off to be delivered to the right desks. After that they would need to hit decontamination before they wondered around on base. But after that, Gabriel looked forward to long hot shower with his husband and something soft to lay on.

“None to report,” Gabriel said as Jack trekked by him, Jack’s tail loosely wrapped around Gabriel’s wrist. One of the many weird ways Jack liked to casually platonically touch him that Gabriel had gotten used to and loved.

“Excellent news as always,” Angela beamed. “Make sure you all report for decontamination after turning your gear, everyone. We don’t want a repeat of the Venus flu epidemic.”

“I don’t think anyone wants a repeat of that,” Jesse laughed.

“Since you were patient zero of that, I sure hope not,” Angela laughed, making Jesse roll his eyes and the group chuckle.

The armory took their gear and armor from them for cleaning and repair if there were any. Jesse handed over his Peacekeeper for cleaning, getting the usual note that he would pick up his signature gun later instead of it being held like everyone else’s weapons. Jack and Gabriel gratefully handed over their large weapons though. They liked the heavy weapons they used in battle just fine, but outside of battle? Not really fun to carry the heavy chunks of metal around. After the weapons they all handed over their field armor, mostly chest plates and armored boots, Gabriel gratefully handing over his field boots and getting his casual boots that he wore around base in turn, trying not to think how old he must have been if he had ‘comfy’ shoes for around the house.

Decontamination was just as much fun. Standing in a little square box of a room crammed in with the crew while several various colored lights shined on the room and killed anything that might have hitched a ride on them so far. After the light show, there was a quick sweep to make sure that there was nothing on the computer’s radar before a loud and almost sickeningly cheerful beep alerted them that they were clean enough to enter the base.

“No Venus flu, great job McCree,” Genji snorted. Jesse smacked the back of Genji’s head, making Genji laugh.

The doors opened and Jesse quickly left, humming a tune as he undoubtedly went to go find his boyfriend. Ana and Fareeha chatted as they left together, the two ever working on patching up their once fractured mother-daughter relationship. Genji wished Gabriel and Jack well before going off, probably to find Zenyatta and Lucio somewhere on base. That left Gabriel and Jack to head to the quarters together, holding hands as they trekked back to their quarters for some much needed R&R after being out in space for a month.

“Think we missed anything good?” Gabriel asked.

“One way to find out,” Jack grinned.

Gabriel fished his comm device out of his pocket, pulling up the chatting app that all the field operatives had so they could shoot the shit even when people were out and about. There were a few pings waiting for Gabriel, all recent, but he scrolled through everything to see what people were talking about.

[GABE Entering Overwatch Channel: My boots are Gucci, my vodka is Gucci, self loathing? Gucci]  
[Clearing User for Clearance]  
[Cleared.]  
[User was mentioned: 5 times since last visit]

HANA: They had a new and improved version of my meka that they wanted me to field test  
HANA: Especially heat warning areas :u  
JESSE: fun times  
HANA: THE BEST I NEED STRONG FUCKING SUNSCREEN  
ANGELA: i can provide both sunscreen and a thermal protection undersuit?  
HANA: doesn’t change the fact that they want me to jump into an active volcano angie asdfghjk  
HANA: HEY! The grandpa couple is here  
GABE: Grandpa?  
HANA: I mean, you’re old enough to be my grandpa? Lmao sup Gabe  
GABE: Do we have to go through this every time I come back from pace, Ms. War Hero?  
HANA: It’s a time honored tradition for me to give you shit every time you come back  
HANA: It means I care and that I missed you  
GABE: Aren’t you sweet  
GABE: Me and Jack miss anything fun?  
HANA: I get to jump into an active volcano so Korea can test meka capable of touching down on heat planets  
ANGELA: amelia is making great strides with her therapy, emotional, physical and genetic  
GABE: Always good to hear, glad she’s still going down the road of recovery  
ANGELA: the junker boys took down a talon unit on their own  
ANGELA: almost took out a civilian building but… those boys  
GABE: Very good to hear  
GENJI: Apparently Zen knocked osmeone right the fuck out  
GABE: ???  
ZEN: He was being belligerent and threatening against my person. When he started swinging, I incapacitated.  
ANGELA: broke his jaw, you mean  
GENJI: I’m so proud  
GABE: lmao  
HANA: It’s actually been pretty quiet around here, kinda boring  
GABE: Hey, we like boring, don’t jinx it  
ANGELA: true, peace and quiet is the key  
HANA: yeah yeah, but I still like some action  
GABE: Go jump in your volcano Ms. War Hero  
HANA: >:T

“Anything good?” Jack asked.

They had made it to their quarters on the habitation deck. Jack fed the lock-pad their password and lock keycard, letting them in.

“Not much, everything’s been quiet,” Gabriel reported, tossing his bags onto the ground. First thing was first, a long hot shower to really get the month off in space off his skin and he was dragging his husband in with him. With all the pointy bits, Jack had a lot of nook and crannies that did not get the attention that they needed and it could irritate skin, scales or spines if left for too long.

“Perfect,” Jack sighed. “Please tell me your getting in the shower.”

“Yeah, let’s scrub you down, alien boy,” Gabriel smirked, getting smacked by Jack’s tail. “Worth it.”

Once they were clean, and every inch of Jack scrubbed for blood and other gunk that might have been left over from the mercs, they finally relaxed in their room, idly making a small attempt to do their usual ‘after mission’ checklist. Laundry could wait, the machines were probably busy anyway and they did not feel like trekking across base after showering. Trimming of hair could wait until their next shared shower.

Jack fell down hard in one of their cushioned seats, groaning as his tail grabbed the heavy duty trimmers from their tiny coffee table and started tackling his talons, trimming them back to blunt points. The base always liked it when Jack’s natural and lethal weapons were dulled down a bit, something about making the soft and squishy humans on base feel a bit safer around him. Gabriel grabbed the second pair, sitting in his own chair before reaching down and grabbing one of Jack’s feet and plopping it in his lap to take care of the claws there.

“One day I’ll let this things grow out again,” Jack grumbled as he worked.

“It’ll drive you nuts if you stop now, it’s habit,” Gabriel laughed, working over Jack’s toes. Just to mess with Jack, he squished one of Jack’s toe pads, making the claw unsheath and making Jack snort with laughter before playfully kicking at him. Took a moment, but Gabriel got the foot back and went back to trimming talons.

“One day I’ll return to my natural habitat and then you’ll all be sorry,” Jack gruffed playfully.

“Cornfields?” Gabriel asked only to get smacked softly by Jack’s tail upside his head.

“Jackass edgelord,” Jack gruffed.

“You know I’m right though, you’re never getting away with revealing that your planet is basically Indiana cornfield hell,” Gabriel laughed. “Farm boy.”

Gabriel yelped as Jack jumped into his chair, sitting in his lap and making purring/playful growls as he pretend to try to nip at Gabriel’s neck. Gabriel tried to fight him off viliantly, tickling Jack’s side and yanking softly on Jack’s tail, but had to yield when Jack caught his hands and pinned them on the chair behind his head, purring in his face.

“Fine, you win, Jackie-boo,” Gabriel relented.

“Good,” Jack smirked before kissing Gabriel.

Just two old soldiers relaxing after working, just two old soldiers trying to save up for retirement. Just two old soldiers that wanted to rest after all the shit that they had been through.


	2. Four legs, a lot of fangs and a lot of attitude -(nsfw scene)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Mentioned body horror, mentioned bad mental health, language, injections, mentioned blood, lots of background ships mentioned
> 
> NSFW WARNING: mlm smut, trans characters, trans character topping, fingering, penetrative sex, weird alien anatomy

Gabriel was sitting in Angela’s clinic at the moment. 

It was about as much fun as it had been since he was brought back into the young and reformed arms of Overwatch years ago. Back then though, he had spent a great deal of hours in the clinic, more often naught against his will, sometimes even collared and cuff to make him cooperate. At least now Gabriel only had to show up for periodic appointments to monitor his health. 

Sitting in a sterilized room, in an uncomfortable flat chair and listening to the soft hum of the room as Angela’s machines worked, yep, still just as much leaps and bounds of fun, Gabriel thought bitterly. The soft ‘tap’ of Angela’s flat shoes as she walked around humming gently as she worked. The cheesy pun filled posters about getting well soon that Angela collected in all languages, both human and extraterrestrial. Honestly Gabe still did not get the one that was supposed to be from Jack’s species, even getting it explained several times over the years. Still, made Jack almost cry with laughter every time he saw it.

Gabriel watched Angela move a tray of what looked like blood samples from one fridge to another before finally addressing him.

“Good morning, Gabriel, how are you?” Angela smiled as Gabriel gratefully got up from his uncomfortable chair and moved to sit one one of the uncomfortable beds instead.

“Good, finally good to get some rest on a real bed and a really hot shower,” Gabriel said.

“Any changes I should know about?” Angela asked, gently taking Gabriel’s wrist in her hands, looking at the permanent fixture on his wrist. A sleek silver band with an oval face, it looked something like a watch at a brief glance, but a closer look revealed that the face was blank with a small rubber bit in the slightly concave surface, marked with needle marks.

“None, they’ve been… quiet,” Gabriel grumbled.

“Good, excellent progress Gabriel,” Angela smiled. Leaving his wrist alone for the moment, she went to grab something from one of her many cold drawers filled with syringes before coming back to him, pushing the air out of the one she had selected before pressing the sharp tip against the rubber bit. “I am going to top off your tranquilizer and nanite sedative. Careful of the pinch.”

Hardly felt it, like he had hardly felt the previous top offs. The wristband let out a low note as Angela filled it up with the sedative that would… keep him _him_ in case anything happened to him on a mission or on base. When it was topped off, the wristband chirped pleasantly, signaling Angela to pull the syringe free and take the three fourths full syringe away.

“My, you keep using less and less tranquilizer Gabriel, you’re making excellent progress,” Angela praised, giving him a warm smile.

“Yeah yeah, but this…” Gabriel grumbled, looking at the wristband on his his wrist, “Will never go away, I know.”

“But it can be managed, it can be won, and you did that, Gabriel, you won over this when almost everyone thought that you would never come back to us. You’ve won, Gabriel,” Angela told him, gently petting his shoulder. “Now. As I said before, everything checks out. I would like you to do some gentle exercises for your knees to promote good health and lessen joint discomfort. Your testosterone pellet needs to be changed out in about a month and a half and… you need to brush more. Or at least stop eating as much candy.”

A pur alerted Gabriel to Jack a half second before there was an alien wrapped around him, tail squeezing him tight. Jack purred against his ear as he snuggled up against Gabriel.

“Hello Jack,” Angela giggled as Gabriel just sort of accepted his predicament as Jack nuzzled against his neck.

“Hey Angie,” Jack rumbled.

“Here for your appointment?”

“...Well shit, since I’m here now might as well,” Jack grumbled.

“Crotchety old man,” Angela snorted, making Jack huff at her while she went to grab her file for him.

“Please stop trying to stick your cold hands up my hoodie,” Gabriel laughed at the talon tipped hands tried to do just that. “Put on a real shirt or something if you’re cold.”

“Real shirts rub my spines the wrong way,” Jack whined.

“I’d said I’d make you a special oversized hoodie,” Gabriel retorted, writhing a bit in Jack’s hold. But Jack’s stupid limbs were made for climbing and that stupid super soldier program that they were both in in their youths had made Jack… well… jacked and even years later Jack was still much stronger than him. Gabriel was very happily forced to keep enjoying the clingy full body alien hug. Jack purred into Gabriel’s ear just to further rub it in.

“Mmm, but why when I can steal yours?” Jack purred.

“Because I like this one and your nails have a habit of shredding anything that isn’t military grade and reinforced,” Gabriel chuckled, snorting when Jack’s breath ghosted over the sensitive and ticklish spot on the side of his neck, just underneath his ear.

“Not to mention they make thermal bracelets for our more cold blooded operatives,” Angela smirked, folder in hand. “You just want to steal your husband’s clothing.”

“Caught red handed- er, blue handed,” Gabriel snorted, swatting away Jack’s hand once again trying to delve into his hoodie, fingers skimming across the blue scales across the back of Jack’s hand. Jack gruffed before reluctantly pulling away to sit next to Gabriel, rolling his eyes as Angela went through her routine to check Jack’s health.

Because of Jack’s biology, there were some odd tests to make sure that he was still fit despite his age. Namely the claws and talons test, that Angela had to take one of her sharpened scalpels against Jack’s talons and claws to make sure that they were still hard as steel, as well as his teeth. After that was a less weird test, checking various patches of scales for any looseness, abnormal shedding, color and luster of scales.

“Claw and tooth density is still good, scales looking a little dull but space travel does that to them, as always I recommend making sure your rehydrating properly between missions. Tail strength check!”

Jack let his tail flop on the ground, letting Angela carefully ease her weight onto it before Jack’s tail easily lifted her off the ground a few inches.

“Strong as ever,” Angela beamed before Jack let her down. “Your multi-system regulation pellet is set to be exchanged out in three months. As far as I can see, you’re still as healthy as a horse, Jack.”

“Amazing, fantastic… where’s my lollipop?”

Angela chuckled before fetching their lollipops, grape and blueberry their favorites, before shooing them out of her clinic to get them out of her way. They left, enjoying their treats, Gabriel having to settle for one mildly chilly claw tipped hand pressing against the bare small of his back underneath his shirt and hoodie, grumbling about it as Jack’s blue tongue wrapped around his blue treat. It was always fascinating to watched Jack’s weird lizard tongue work, especially with the weird as fuck ragged textured tip.

“Oh boys!”

Gabriel turned around in time to catch a paper bag thrown at his chest.

“Condoms and antihistamines,” Angela said from her doorway before laughing loudly when Gabriel balked. “Figured you could use a refill.”

“Thanks Angie,” Jack said before Gabriel could say anything, taking the bag from Gabriel’s hand and walking ahead. Gabriel only grumbled underneath his breath before catching up with his husband.

“She gets louder and bolder every year, I swear,” Gabriel sighed.

“Yeah, she’ll be a crotchety old lady in no time,” Jack snorted. “Just means that she’ll be more fun to deal with each passing year.”

“You keep trying to put that cold as fuck hand up my hoodie again and you’re not going to live long enough to see it, old man,” Gabriel deadpanned, swatting at the offending arm.

“I’m cold blooded Gabe, love me,” Jack whined.

“Jack, _Jack_ ,” Gabriel stressed, yelping when Jack, quick as a flash, jumped onto his back and wrapped around him. They sure made a scene, Jack coiling as much as he could around Gabriel and Gabriel trying to gently get him off. Eventually Gabriel accepted his fate, nudging Jack further up his back for convenience before walking like that.

“Happy now, boyscout?” Gabriel gruffed.

“Yes, edgelord,” Jack snarked in his ear.

As they awkwardly walked, they happened across Amélie, likely on her way to Angela’s clinic.

“Hey Amélie,” Gabriel gruffed out. SEP program and his own fucked up biology be damned, Jack was far too fucking heavy to be carrying around at his age.

Amélie worked her mouth for a moment, as though she were unsure what words were for a moment, before bobbing her head in greetings. Gabriel noted that her skin looked a lot less indigo than he last saw it, though some of the thinner parts of her skin was still notably a shade of purple. At least the surgeries that had removed some of the features that what had come from what made her a literal stone cold, heartless brainwashed killer had done to her. And they looked like they were healing nicely as well. Could hardly tell where her jaw had once split open into mandibles now.

“Salute, gentlemen,” Amélie mumbled.

“Gene therapy still a bit rough?” Gabriel asked.

“I… yes,” Amélie said, “But it works. So I shall… endeavor.”

“Yeah… we all have too, I guess,” Gabriel sighed.

They left the woman to continue on her way to Angela’s clinic, Jack climbing down off his back to instead walk hand in hand with him as they continued on their way.

“You okay, babe?” Jack asked after a moment.

“Yeah, it’s… I guess it’s still rough to be reminded about what happened, even if it was a few years ago. Those kinds of wounds will never heal I guess,” Gabriel sighed, bringing his wrist up to look at his wristband. The barrier between him and… what happened to him, what could happen if control slipped just a little. Amélie could be fixed mostly with gene therapy, especially with the advances that Angela had made just for her. 

But him? Praying and hoping that this wristband could stop him if he started lapsing was the closest thing he would ever get.

“Hey,” Jack’s tail thawped him across the back of his thighs, bringing him out of it and back to Jack standing by his side. “Stay here with me.”

“Sorry,” Gabriel sighed.

“Come on, let’s go check on the younglings,” Jack said.

“I am not going anywhere near Jesse or Genji with a bag of condoms and antihistamines,” Gabriel said flatly, prompting Jack to laugh.

“It’ll be a conversation starter,” Jack winked.

“Jack, no.”

“Jack yes!”

* * *

After a stop by their room, they went to check up on what the younger operatives were doing. 

The two of them found Jesse and the two Shimada brothers in the simulator room at first, hacking and slashing and shooting bullets and arrows through holograms that burst into chunks of raw visual data while the scoreboard above them chimed with each new kill. Based on how focused the three of them were, it looked like they were trying to climb up in the scoreboard. Not that anyone could ever beat the Dream Team’s long standing record anytime soon, but theser younger operatives were giving them a run for their money and slowly climbing towards the jackpot.

Gabriel and Jack watched from behind the protected glass as the three cut down what seemed like an unending army of holograms. Bullets, arrows and Genji’s sword flying this way and that, the three of them almost seamless coordinating together to get kill after kill. Was damned impressive.

Jack tapped the side of the touch screen, drawing Gabriel’s attention to the on-screen button that would activate the sim’s overhead sound system. Too fucking good to pass up. Gabriel grinned as he nonchalantly pressed a few buttons before leaning over towards the small receiving slot. Jack snorted as he briefly licked his lips before speaking up.

“Does anyone need... **healing**?!”

Genji tripped mid sweep and rolled to avoid being struck by one of the holograms. Jesse and Hanzo looked to where Genji had fallen, bleeding last precious few seconds before the buzzer sounded and cut the three off from their score climb. Nowhere near breaking the top score. Gabriel listened to Jack practically wail with laughter as Genji yelled Japanese obscenities before picking himself as the sim cut out and left blank environment, littered with gunshot holes and arrows and sword slashes before the self repairing material started to correct the damage. When Genji managed to jump up, he turned towards them and threw up both middle fingers.

“Does that mean you do?” Gabriel asked over the overhead system.

Jesse and Hanzo thought it was the funniest fucking thing, Jesse with his head on Hanzo’s shoulder as Hanzo laughed loudly at his brother’s expense.

“I owe Hana twenty goddamn more credits thanks to you!” Genji yelled.

“You really should make bets that your credit account can’t back up,” Gabriel laughed, Jack practically crying with laughter next to him.

“He could afford it if he stopped blowin’ money on his boyfriends!” Jesse pointed out.

Genji huffed, putting away his sword before stomping towards the exit door for the sim. Jesse and Hanzo followed, Gabriel cutting the lights and stroking Jack’s head as the man’s laughter kept on strong, especially when Genji pouted/stormed right by them, likely on his way to go see said boyfriends. Jesse and Hanzo were not too far behind him.

“One day we’ll beat the Dream Team’s score,” Jesse snorted before giving Gabriel a playful punch to the shoulder. “But first you gotta stop pullin’ shit like that, Gabe.”

“Me? Pass up a chance to mess with people?” Gabriel said, mock incredulously.

“Shit, stop the joker from passing up his jokes, you’re right,” Jesse deadpanned, rolling his eyes. “You’d drop dead on the spot from boredom.”

“Besides all that, you realize that the Dream Team was stacked as shit right?” Gabriel pointed out, “Ana, Reinhardt, Torbjorn, Jack and myself? You can’t beat a well rounded team, not to mention a five person team, with three people, right?”

“It’ll be more impressive when we do!” Jesse grinned.

“Right, right, how do you put up with him?” Gabriel muttered to Hanzo.

“One day at a time,” Hanzo snarked, making Jesse put a dramatic hand to his chest and his jaw drop. Gabriel and Jack laughed at poor Jesse’s expense as Hanzo just snorted at his husband’s overly exaggerated expression.

“I’ve been betrayed,” Jesse pouted.

“Well, now that I’ve caused mischief I guess I better go bother someone else,” Gabriel smirked. “Take care you two.”

Leaving the two men, Jack and Gabriel wandered around the base for a bit, trying to fill the day. The first day after coming back from space always made them nervous and twitchy and eager to stretch their legs. Not to mention Angela was always harping on them to do some ‘gentle’ exercises like walking, easier on their old joints and still a good exercise. Just one of the many things about them getting old. Not that it mattered for long, they were only working to fluff up their retirement fund a bit more and then they could be old farts on some beach planet for the rest of their years.

They found Fareeha and Satya standing by one of the windows that showed the vast city that they were based in.

“Afternoon ladies, being boring?” Gabriel asked, putting his chin on Fareeha’s shoulder. He would have put his chin on her head, like when she was a tyke running around the base, but she had been far too tall for too long for Gabriel to attempt to do that. Fareeha just snorted at him before nudging him off and then thumping his shoulder with a chuckle.

“Good afternoon gentlemen,” Satya smirked.

“We’re not being boring, I’m going over fly reports with Satya, she’s better with numbers than me,” Fareeha retorted.

“So, being boring,” Gabriel grinned before getting thumped again, laughing as he rubbed the sore spot on his arm. “I’m right, it’s why you’re hitting me.”

“Boring as it is, it still needs to be done,” Fareeha snarked.

“And not at all an excuse to hang out with one your girlfriends on the clock,” Jack pointed out.

“Ow!” Gabriel yelped, rubbing his arm, “Why’d you punch _me_?!”

“You’re closer,” Fareeha snarked back. “Go be jokers elsewhere, you two.”

“Make me,” Gabriel provoked, sticking his tongue out.

“Gaaaabbbbee,” Fareeha whined through a laugh.

“Oh fine, leave you lesbians to it,” Gabriel laughed, “Tell your other girlfriend, and my hacker child, that I said hi, huh?”

Fareeha blew the two of them a raspberry and Satya waved them off as they went to find something else to do, someone else to bother.

The did end up stopping by a window that overlooked the docking bay when they saw the roof slid open to watch one of the ships take off. Based on the smaller model, it looked like it was staying on planet. Still, just as breathtaking to watch the ship slowly rise before aiming itself towards it destination and smoothly gliding off. The big ship would probably take off later that day with… if Gabriel had the rotations right, Dr. Zhou, Zarya, Angela, Torbjorn and then possibly Bastion or Hana depending on the mission. Probably Hana if they were going anywhere near a heat planet.

They stopped for something to eat in the seemingly always bustling mess hall, sitting at a table with Reinhardt and Ana as the two chatted.

“Good afternoon boys, how goes it?” Ana asked over her cup of tea.

“Doing the rounds, annoying the young,” Gabriel grinned, “How are you two?”

“Tired,” Ana sighed, “Always get tired after coming back planetside.”

“Tired as well, the new recruits are a handful,” Reinhardt yawned.

“As the saying goes, we’re too old for this shit,” Jack said, picking at his tray of various… alien cuisine that looked as appetizing as the human food did. Which was to say, not all.

“You boys are retiring soon, correct?” Ana asked.

“Yeah, just need to credits to make sure we’re good and set up,” Gabriel said, “Two years tops and then we’re going to go be old and do jack shit somewhere warm and sunny year round. Maybe one of those manicured, luxury vacation and retirement planets.”

“Ha, I suppose I’m in the same boat,” Ana sighed wistfully, “Need the money before I can even start thinking about it and-” She paused to softly put her lips to Reinhardt’s mouth, “Not live off of Reinhardt’s hard earned account. I want to help with my share too, my dearest.”

Reinhardt huffed but kissed her fingers regardless, making Ana pull them away with a mock look of disgust before she giggled and blushed.

“Yeah, Reinhardt could retire to a nice vacation planet and live out his days in comfort right now, what’s stopping him? His mind hasn’t caught up with his body on how old it is,” Gabriel snarked.

“I’m not that much older than you,” Reinhardt retorted through a grin.

“Yeah, but you’re in great shape and ripped to hell.”

They shared a laugh, a couple of old soldiers winding down in their lives and enjoying the quiet moment. When they were done, they wished Ana and Reinhardt well before going to see if they could find more mischief.

* * *

In the rec room they found a few more of the younger operatives lounging about enjoying their evening, finishing off work or enjoying their time before the big ship went out into space again. 

Hana looked like she was taking time to stretch out this metallic looking undersuit, grumbling about something that did not sound nice in Korean underneath her breath. Genji was currently in a pile, resting against Zenyatta while Lucio rested against him, sticking his tongue out at both Gabriel and Jack as they entered the room before going back to grumping and nesting in boyfriends. Dr. Zhou and Zarya looked like they were going over their equipment before they headed off into space.

“Hey g-pa’s,” Hana said as she stretched her arms above her head.

“Hey pipsqueak,” Jack snarked as the two of them claimed the empty couch, flopping into the worn soft cushions, “Nice skin suit.”

“It’s supposed to keep me protected from volcanoes, Zarya gets to toss me into one when we go out to do missions and junk,” Hana said.

“Aww, so I don’t get to watch a live stream of you trying to jump into one and I can’t bribe someone to tell you ‘do a flip?’ on your way in?” Gabriel chuckled.

“I was going to flip her anyway,” Zarya said, making everyone except Hana burst into laughter. Hana just sighed and rolled her eyes before going back to her stretches.

“Fifty credits if you can make her skip,” Jack said.

“Deal,” Zarya grinned.

“No!” Hana yelled but her mouth was crooked up into a good natured grin. “I’ll use your secret weapon against you.”

“What’s that?” Gabriel asked.

“I’ll tell Reinhardt you two are being mean,” Hana smirked.

“... I take it back, don’t skip her because if you do, Reinhardt will skip me... across concrete,” Gabriel said flatly.

“Now that would be fun to watch,” Genji piped up.

“Remember Genji, I was with you in Blackwatch, I know all of your dirty secrets,” Gabriel snarked back.

“...Shutting up now,” Genji squeaked.

“Oh, I wish to hear some of those,” Zenyatta chimed.

“Me too!” Lucio laughed.

“Will you two go be brats somewhere else?!” Genji yelled, smacking at the closest of the duo to him, which was Jack and his tail. Jack’s tail smacked back though.

“You know, we keep hearing that everywhere, I think the problem is us, Jackie,” Gabriel said to his husband.

“I still think there’s a problem with our youth these days,” Jack chuckled.

“Aren’t your youth terrifying little balls of talons, fangs and claws, Mr. Morrison?” Dr. Zhou piped up.

“Nightmarish little shits,” Jack shuddered.

Despite Genji’s wanting them to leave, they ended up staying in the rec room, for lack of a better option and kind of sick of just idling around the base bored out of their minds. Gabriel got to joke around with the other operatives, flustering Genji at least once and getting a laugh more than once. Jack ended up curled up tightly against his side, sliding an arm into his hoodie and that tail wrapping around Gabriel’s leg, leeching warmth from him and Gabriel just let him.

“Ugh, I kinda wish we had better to eat than rations before we left at least,” Hana said, having given up on stretching and now messing around with her comm device.

“Mmm,” Gabriel hummed, grinning when Hana perked up as he stood up and started nonchalantly walking out of the room.

Jack followed him of course, groaning about having to get up and move just when he was getting comfortable. A few of the other operatives got up and followed as well, trailing after him all the way until they hit one of the lower habitation floors on the base. Because of the various shifts that people worked and such, and because of the levels, some of the lower habitation had basic kitchens so that people that worked the red eyed shift could cook their own meals. Or in Gabriel’s case, cook something that tasted better than the military rations they served on the higher floors.

“Gotta be quiet, you know how cranky the third shifts get,” Gabriel scolded them as he worked.

“They’re not getting read to be tossed into a volcano on a heat planet,” Hana retorted.

“Yeah, but if one of them comes out and starts swinging a shoe or something I’m throwing you in front of me,” Gabriel laughed.

After feeding the troops, it was that time for them to get going and start packing gear to head out. Jack and Gabriel walked with them to the docking bay to wish them well and send them off. Despite the jabs and jokes about it, Gabriel did stress to Hana about her meka test to be careful, which got him a raspberry and ‘sure grandpa’ before Hana heaved her gear up and got on the ship.

“Careful out there, ladies,” Gabriel said to Zarya and Dr. Zhou.

“Always,” Dr. Zhou smiled.

“Don’t hog the comms to chat with the folks, Torb,” Gabriel snarked as Torbjorn walked back, “Again.”

“Hush you,” Torbjorn huffed.

“Behave while I’m gone, boys,” Angela said as she passed, “And keep everyone in line? I’d rather not come back to find out that Dr. Temperantia has been mending broken bones and patching up bullet holes again.”

“That was one time, Angie, give us some credit,” Gabriel chuckled.

“Once was more than enough,” Angela deadpanned.

“Alright alright, so kick some ass in space,” Jack smirked.

“Will do, be well boys,” Angela said before boarding.

It was not safe to be on the walkways while ships were taking off, so they got to watch the take off from within the safety of the base, waving at the ship all the way until it punched through the atmosphere before walking back to their room.

“And a day goes by,” Jack yawned, stretching.

“I’ll take a boring day go by then anything exciting,” Gabriel said.

“Yeah… how about we go to bed? I’m getting cold and sluggish.”

“Sure thing, Jackie-boo.”

They returned to their quarters and to a hot shower that would warm Jack’s cold blood right up. Gabriel climbed in with Jack to help scrub down all the nooks and crannies that Jack had, trailing his hands lovingly where ever he could reach on his husband’s body. Jack purred underneath the attention, turning on Gabe to trail his own hands over Gabe’s body in turn, dragging the blunted edges of his claws over Gabe’s skin.

“Oh boy, are those antihistamines and condoms going to get used early?” Gabriel chuckled when Jack leaned into mouth at the side of his neck, sharp teeth scraping at the skin lightly.

“Fuck yeah,” Jack rumbled.

* * *

Smut Start

* * *

The shower was really not the best place for their fun, mostly because Jack’s tail had a habit of thrashing during the most… intense parts of it and the walls of their humble shower really could not take those kinds of hits. Not to mention Jack’s talons had no traction on the tiles even after they added some textured pads after the last incident that had destroyed their shower. But that was fine, a quick toweling off and both of them popping one of the pills in the bag and a quick grabbing of a condom and Gabe was ready to make Jack’s tail thrash as hard as they wanted on their bed. The dim light of the room made bioluminescence on Jack glow softly, beautifully and Gabriel could not get enough.

“You’re staring,” Jack purred as Gabriel ran his hands up and down every bit of Jack’s body as he could.

“You’re good looking,” Gabriel quipped back. His hands trailed over the rough textures of the burn scars on the front of Jack’s body. From the exploding ship that spaced a lot of people and everyone thought killed the two of them. It had left cotton candy blue patches over the almost human color of Jack’s front that blended into his range of blues of his scales.

“Noooo, I know that look, edgelord, you’re brooding,” Jack said.

“Brooding, thinking, pondering, it’s the sexy version at least,” Gabriel snarked before encouraging Jack’s legs open to reveal the dark blue skin and the slit there. No bioluminescence there, it was impractical to draw attention to a vulnerable area. But the slit was already parting to reveal bright blue and layered looking flesh.

“Well, sexy brood master,” Jack panted, the textured tip of his tongue coming out to swipe at his lips. “You going to get on with it?”

Jack was already petallying open, his slit opening to revealing the layered flesh, like a blue flower opening. Jack had a long explanation a long, long time ago for why it was textured like that, something about catching on anatomy and making breeding easier and also about keeping it sealed shut in certain situations. But Gabriel was more interested in driving his husband up a wall and making him moan and growl than a xenobiology lesson.

“So handsome, Jackie,” Gabriel groaned as he used his fingers to gently part Jack a bit more, revealing more bright blue flesh. 

A few brushes along the firm petaled flesh got some slick on his fingers, Jack already wet with arousal. A growling moan escaped Jack as he gently stroked and touched, taking his time to explore and teased, slipping in further when enough slick permitted it. Some gently prodding turned up the weak spot along the roof of Jack’s slit, the firm long bump that had Jack bucking and growling and moaning deeply and that tail of his finding Gabriel’s waist and squeezing. Gabriel stroked it a few times, really got Jack writhing with need, before pulling away to prod his fingers deeper inside of him and start stretching him.

“Get down here.”

Gabriel was very willingly pulled down for a kiss, Jack’s lips insistently pressing against his own before that blue tongue of his was licking for entrance to which Gabriel eagerly granted. 

The smoother texture of Jack’s tongue was always something of a marvel for Gabriel, had been since Jack and him first started hot and heavy macking. So were the heavy scrapping of Jack’s sharp teeth. Even after so many years of heavy kissing, Gabriel still was was pleasantly surprised by Jack’s alien differences.

“You gonna do more then put fingers in my cloaca?”

“Oh fuck you, it’s not a cloaca!”

“How do you know my alien anatomy, Gabe?”

“Goddammit Jack, stop trying to ruin the mood,” Gabriel laughed.

Just to spite the asshole, Gabriel kept fingering him, moving his fingers in and out of Jack’s hole while Jack just purred and moaned, rolling his hips when there was a brush to the roof of his hole. They settled into quietness again, Gabriel’s fingers and Jack’s hole making wet sounds and they grunted and groaned together. When three fingers slid in and out nicely, Jack squeezed his tail to try and urge Gabriel on.

“Come on,” Jack growled.

“Patience,” Gabriel teased.

“Too old for that,” Jack panted.

“Too old my ass. At your age, your species still have three growth spurts left,” Gabriel retorted.

“Not my fault we keep changing,” Jack shot back before grabbing Gabriel’s wrist and finally just using superior strength to pull his fingers out. Figuring that Jack really want not in the mood for teasing, Gabriel reluctantly pulled away to grab the strap-on and harness to strap on to himself. When it was nice and snug and the vibrating base was flipped on and the condom rolled on to prevent accidental mixing of fluids, Gabriel parted Jack’s thighs enough to wedge himself closer. Using one hand to guide himself and the other to squeeze Jack’s hip.

A moan escaped the both of them as Gabriel ground the two of them together, getting them both slick after some grinding before pushing in.

They were a quiet couple in bed. One too many rushed and late night sessions while crammed into a cot together during the later days of their SEP and Omnic Crisis days had enforced certain habits. Just some growls and grunts and moans and a few reverent moans of the other’s name on their lips. They had plenty of other places to talk, to tell each other sweet nothings and ‘I love yous’ and other gentle and romantic things. No, they were a quiet and snuggly couple in bed and that suited each other just fine.

Tonight they hugged close, Jack wrapping around Gabriel like Jack liked and Gabriel liked too. They kissed, slow and languid, Jack always mindful of his teeth but using that interesting tongue of his and those firm and slightly scratchy lips. Wriggling a bit, Gabriel got his arms around Jack’s torso and squeezed him tight, hugging him close and kissing him sweetly. Jack purred against his mouth, rumbling pleasantly.

When they finished, it was with a quiet shudder on both of their parts, pleasure shuddering up and down both of their spines. They squeezed each other close, panting and shaking against one another before they both pulled apart to clean themselves up sluggish, the strap-on getting cleaned and put away, before they quickly went back to snuggling.

* * *

Smut End.

* * *

Jack purred loudly and heavily against Gabriel’s neck, coiled him around him as much as he could. One of Gabriel’s fingers were idly toying with the spines along Jack’s back, other hand cradling the back of his own head.

“Your wristband quiet?” Jack said after a moment before going right back to purring

Gabriel reluctantly pulled his hand away from Jack’s back to look at it. The clear face was a soft pink color instead of grey.

“Hmm, a small dose was used,” Gabriel sighed.

“I put you through the ringer, old man?” Jack laughed.

“Says you, _jack_ ass,” Gabriel snorted. Jack laughed, like he always did at Gabriel’s bad jack related puns, before nuzzling in deeper into Gabriel’s neck, purring contently. Gabriel went back to toying with the spines on Jack’s back, turning his head to kiss Jack’s forehead.

“You’re warm,” Jack mumbled.

“Mmm, just to keep you warm, Jackie,” Gabriel mumbled back.

“Aren’t you sweet…” Jack was out cold against Gabriel’s side. Gabriel just smiled before turning to kiss Jack’s nose and then just relaxing himself. 

Pestering thoughts of the wristband haunted him before exhaustion won out and Gabriel’s eyes closed.


	3. It's Closer Than You Think

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Nightmare mention, flashbacks, language

Gabriel woke up to a cold sweat and claws at his throat.

“Gabe?”

Oh... 

Gabriel looked over at Jack sitting up in their bed, looking down at him with concern. Blunted claw tips scraped at his throat as Jack tried to scrap some of the sweat from his skin. With a tired groan, Gabriel gently nudged Jack’s hand away before scrubbing his face to try and work some more blood flow and try and rouse himself up a bit. When his eyes stopped perceiving the world as shaking like an earthquake, Gabriel looked at his wristband, once again a soft pink color.

“Sorry, I guess I had a nightmare,” Gabriel sighed before kissing his husband’s worried cheek. “Did I wake you?”

“I was getting up. You were just breathing heavy and groaning,” Jack said, returning the kiss. “Which is a hell of a lot better than some of your other reactions to nightmares.”

“Yeah, not screaming and shredding the bedsheets anymore,” Gabriel said as Jack’s head ducked down to nuzzle at the side of his neck. Still, just in case Gabriel looked down at his fingertips and were relieved to see his normal fingertips. Calloused to hell with a few dry cracks and scars, but not the metallic talons Gabriel had feared would be there for a hot paranoid second. Gabriel was improving, he was improving, and like Angela had said. For so long people were so convinced that he would never so this was just… baffling.

“You need anything?” Jack asked softly, purring gently against Gabriel’s throat.

“No… just to get up and get my mind on other things,” Gabriel sighed.

“Mmm, coffee sounds good,” Jack rumbled before reluctantly pulling himself away to get up and start trotting towards the shower.

“Ugh, coffee,” Gabriel groaned, grinning when Jack paused and turned on his heel to give him a playfully offended look.

“It’s got caffeine in it, Gabe, I need it to face the day,” Jack playfully criped.

“It’s bitter, it’s smells nasty and you only have half a cup and then add every sugary thing known to man to it,” Gabriel retorted, getting up to follow his husband.

“So… if it’s bitter and smells nasty… does that mean it’s a metaphor for you?”

Gabriel chased Jack into the shower.

* * *

Today was not just a day to laze away. Today, Jack and Gabriel actually had work to do, their planetside duties as it would be. 

Most of their planetside duties were training the younger and newer Overwatch field operatives, since they had been through enough shit that Overwatch considered them ‘experts’ on pretty much everything that could happen in the field. Everything from light combat to ‘What to do if literally everything goes to hell’, they taught weapons proficiency, team dynamics, cross weapons training, and even scenarios where violence or weapons usage was not the answer, they taught everything that they could think of to prepare the young soon to be agents for everything and anything that came at them. Jack and Gabriel often taught classes together with only a few rare instances of teaching apart.

If they were not teaching, sometimes they were sent somewhere on earth to do missions like they did in space. Like Talon strike teams targeting a city on earth, or break up firefights and other things that needed the two’s heavy weaponry or combat skills. Again they were often assigned together with only a few rare instances of being assigned apart.

Today though they were specifically teaching. They, along with Ana and Reinhardt, were running combat simulations with some of the more advanced and older in training field operatives that would soon be evaluated for if they were ready to hit the field or seek another set of training for something else. Overwatch wanted to see where this group was in terms of how well they would do in a real battle before deciding what other training, or promotions, that this group needed. And since a heavy combat sim really was not fun with forty something people against two, Reinhardt and Ana were there to even things out.

“It’s almost the dream team,” Gabriel sighed wistfully as he strapped on his chest plate and pulled on his armored boots.

“Well, Torbjorn is busy with his family these days,” Ana chuckled as she picked up one of the sim rifles. They shot hard plastic darts with paint filled tips so that students could feel and see their mistakes but not be seriously harmed by them. “I told you how Bridgette recently took to the field?”

“Yeah, can’t wait to see her in action and in the rotations,” Gabriel said as he skimmed through the sim’s arsenal of glorified paint pellet guns. He ended up picking up the two that almost matched something like shotguns, though nowhere near the weight class of his normal weaponry.

“Don’t remind Torb though, he gets misty eyed and ornery when you bring it up,” Ana laughed.

“I would never, I value my being,” Gabriel laughed back.

When the team was armored up and armed with pretty much advanced paintball guns, they took to the largest sim room that Overwatch housed. Roughly the size of a standard football field, it had the same material as the other sim rooms, which was being neatly programmed by Satya in the control booth to look like a war torn generic city. Smouldering buildings took over the bland white material, along with various fires, overturned or otherwise wrecked cars and all the fine little details that made it feel like a thoroughly destroyed city.

“Attention students,” Athena said almost pleasantly over the loudspeaker as Satya finished up some of the finer details. “Today’s simulation will have you pitted against four veteran Overwatch field operatives in an attempt to gauge where you skills are in regards to a real life combat situation. The simulation goes as follows: Four heavily armed unknowns are roaming this destroyed city, trying to hunt down fleeing civilians. The operative’s jobs are to capture or ‘shoot’ these four individuals before they cross the arena. If they cross, they have successfully swept the city and have fled and thus rendering the simulation failed.”

“Anyone want to put down credits?” Gabriel smirked at the team.

“I’m going to give them the benefit of the doubt, twenty credits on at least one elimination,” Reinhardt smiled.

“Twenty credits on no eliminations,” Ana said, “As much as I want to give these younglings the benefit, very rarely does anyone first sims go well. But I will happily pay to be wrong.”

“Fifty on us making it to the other side,” Jack said, giving his visor some last minute adjustments. “Remember how we got clean sweeped out first sim, babe?”

“Ha, don’t remind me, still took out one of those instructors way back when,” Gabriel smirked. “I’ll throw twenty on no eliminations.”

“Let the simulation, begin.”

They moved as a unit, deeply inbred teamwork hardly rusted by the fact that they were hardly a team now a days. Reinhardt spearheaded the group with his shield up, occasionally dropping it to make it through some narrow alleyways or to quickly duck through ruined buildings. Ana usually kept above them, the buildings close enough that she could jump from one window to the next, or hop down and land on Reinhardt’s shoulders and jump to where she was headed. Jack and Gabriel kept in pace with one another, guns at the ready to take out anyone that would dare attempt their flanks. Team work makes the dream work and even if it was not the whole dream team, they still know how to make the best of what they had.

The teacher’s first elimination was a rifle wielding student. Ana took him out neatly and shouted a ‘stick with your team, next time!’, apparently knowing the student and leaving the team being a frequent mistake on his part, based on her tone. A few students tried to lead a full on charge against them, only for a combo of Reinhardt’s shield, Ana’s sniper shots and a peppering of shots from Jack’s rifle to stop it in its tracks. Reinhardt stopped to give them a few pros and cons about their attempted maneuver, ultimately applauding them for basic thought and technique but telling them they needed a better team dynamic when going against heavy shields and snipers.

“You might be owing the rest of us money at this rate,” Ana chuckled quietly over comms.

“They still have time, we have yet to hit the heavy hitters,” Reinhardt pointed out.

A few brave souls attempted a suicide run against their flanks, only to be quickly met by Reinhardt’s shield and then Gabriel’s gunfire and cleanly got taken out. They were rephrended for the stupid move and not taking the sim seriously before they trudged over to where the eliminated students were trying to scrub paint off without bothering the slight bruises underneath.

They made good progress, hitting pockets of students trying to form teams, all of them not quite up to snuff to take them out though. A few got close and it swelled all of them with pride to see the people that they had been training doing so well, even if they were technically failing at the moment. Progress was still progress though.

While slipping through a building, Gabriel lagged behind because of a noise and realized that a student was trailing behind them, hoping to get the jump.

“Hold up, let me get this straggler,” He muttered over comms.

While the team paused, Gabriel slipped back through the building and slipped out of a window, ending up a bit behind the little sneaky mite. Looked like a soon to be front runner, clutching a heavier looking rifle that looks like they wanted to use a heavy rifle like Jack one day. Gabriel lifted a his glorified paintball shotgun and aimed it at their back, making sure to aim for the chestpiece to lessen the sting.

Gabriel’s boot scuffed a rock and the student suddenly turned around, Gabriel ending up looking down at a rifle barrel-

_Soldier 76 was snarling behind his mask, probably would have been baring teeth to if it were not in the way. Reaper just kept his shotgun aimed at the man’s face, ready to blast it into blue paste. That tail of Jack’s was lashing back and forth irritably, probably prime and ready to lash out with bone shattering force like Reaper knew it could._

_“What are you going to do, shoot me?” Reaper taunted, voice an evil hiss behind his mask. Jagged teeth gnashed together behind the bone plate hiding his face. “You going to shoot me? Put me out of my fucking misery, huh Jack? Because I want you to fucking shoot me, Jack. I WANT YOU TO FUCKING KILL ME. KILL ME JACK.”_

_“Reyes?”_

“Mr. Reyes?”

Gabriel snapped out of it to his wristband pinging away as the student was wiping paint off their back. They gave him a concerned and confused look as he let his tense arm drop, realizing that his finger had crushed the trigger and jammed it right up in the paint gun. Mindlessly, Gabriel lifted his wrist to look at his wrist band and the pink color that it was. Darker than this morning but… not a dark pink or even red, thankfully.

“...Shit, sorry kid, you okay?” Gabriel asked, turning his attention to the still mildly concerned student, snapping out of his own haze.

“Yeah, bummed that I got caught,” The student huffed.

Shaking himself off, Gabriel offered the student a few good and bad points about their tactics before rejoining the teacher group, currently leisurely trading pot shots with a group of shield wielding students and their own snipers against Reinhardt’s shield and Ana’s shots. When Gabriel was asked about what happened, he just turned his attention to joining the fray.

* * *

“So, a clean sweep,” Jack said as the student filed into the locker rooms to get paint and gear off. They were going to debrief the students and give the students an overview once everyone was back in civvies and then let the munchkins go for the rest of the day. While waiting, they decided to dole out their bets, which had turned out nicely for everyone but Reinhardt, but the kids had put up a hell of a fight, so the big man hardly felt down.

“They’s getting there, they just need some fine tuning and more sims like this,” Ana said, “Teamwork needs more work and we definitely need to stress that to those that broke away from their groups or didn’t form any at all. You would think that after whining about us over using ‘Teamwork makes the dreamwork’ that it would sink in.”

“Speaking of breaking away, you were quiet when you came back, you okay?” Jack asked Gabriel, tail coiling around Gabriel’s waist and squeezing.

“Yeah… had an attack,” Gabriel sighed, before quickly speaking to pacify the horrified looks on his team’s faces, “Nothing happened! Had a flashback and shot once, still hit their armor like I was going too before it. Came out of it quick and I didn’t freak out during it, apparently.”

“That’s… good,” Ana sighed with obvious relief, “Are you well Gabriel?”

“Feel a bit numb from the tranquilizer, bit tired, but I’ll live,” Gabriel sighed, dragging his beanie off to scrub fingers through his hair. The tail wrapped around his waist squeezed as Jack stepped a bit closer, making what Gabriel assumed was a comforting almost purring like noise.

“Well, since we’re giving the kids the rest of the day off, you can take it too, we’ll file the reports,” Reinhardt offered.

“I can handle reports, just this old man will need a nap afterwards.”

“You’re not that old,” Ana quipped.

“I hate to break it to the entire team, but we’re fucking old,” Gabriel quipped with a dry smirk, feeling his mood lighten a bit.

“Never tell a lady that she’s old,” Ana laughed, flicking Gabriel’s ear, but it only made Gabriel laugh.

When the students came out, they went through the debrief with them. Drilling them like the loving teachers that they were, firm but fair someone had told them one day, making sure to note what they were doing right as well as wrong. Reinhardt could hardly contain his pride in their progress, the smile barely budged a centimeter on his face. Jack was the ‘firm-er’ of the dream team, lovingly known as the hardass of the team, but surprisingly Jack has more good than bad to say to them, though still stressed staying with teams through a rolling thunder like growl between sharp teeth. Gabriel stuck with mostly stressing that if they wanted to try and be sneaky, to really put forth the effort into sneaking and not get caught; the student that he caught sneaking huffing loudly and getting chuckled and elbowed by their fellows. Ana had a few notes for the snipers, reminding them lovingly, that their jobs were not to get caught trying to pull off trick shots or look cool, while the snipers of the group groaned.

Eventually they told the students what they wanted, that they had the rest of the day off and that another sim would be planned in the future, either facing their teachers or Athena controlled drones or bots to face off against. They called out farewells but scrambled before their teachers changed their minds.

“And now, paperwork,” Jack groaned.

“I mean… we could go see if we can beat our score in the scored sim,” Reinhardt egged.

“How you have the amount of energy that you do, is baffling,” Gabriel said. “And besides, I’m sure that Genji is still watching the scored sim room and hoping that I try for it. I may have… botched the Shimada bros and Jesse’s score.”

“Ha!” Ana snorted.

“So I think I’ll do paperwork and then nap, coming Jackie?”

* * *

Instead of that nap, Gabriel and Jack instead curled up on the rec couch and watched a live stream of Hana’s live volcano test, after they had finished their work up of course. 

Through a slightly wobbly view through Bastion’s optics, they watched as Hana nervously went over the checklist for herself and her heat prototype meka, making sure that there was no chance of getting burned even with the assurance of both Angela and the Korean government. Bastion beeped in what they probably assumed was a reassuring way as Hana checked over her meka once more.

Hana faced Bastion, and thus the stream, grimacing.

“If I don’t make it, tell Bridgette that I love her,” Hana groaned before climbing into her meka. 

Unlike her usual mekas where the front was open for easy access for the lilith girl to jump in and out of, this one had an apparently air tight sealing hatch to keep heat and potential heated matter out. Hana had a suit to further protect her from heat along with a sleek breathing unit to keep her going through the test. When the seal was shut, they watched the meka go through the usual movement tests to make sure all the joints were working.

Gabriel caught Jack fiddling with his phone, grinning crookedly when he saw the number on the screen. Jack caught him grinning and just held the phone between them when the person on the other end picked up, right as Hana and her meka was standing on the edge of the volcano.

“DO A FLIP!” They yelled together, their voice carrying over the stream and Bastion’s speakers from their comm link.

“Oh my god I hate you guys,” Hana groaned from within her meka, “You can’t see it but I’m flipping you off!”

Jack snorted as he cut the call and the team on stream’s voice chat chuckled at Hana’s expense. What they assumed was rather colorful Korean cursing escaped the meka as it lined up the drop on the rim of the volcano. Zarya finally came into view dressed up in a heat suit, clearly amused by this, before putting a foot on the back of the meka and kicking. A splash of molten material splashed up after her, Bastion beeping as they and Zarya stepped away from the splash zone.

“Remember when we were told to do stupid shit like that?” Gabriel chuckled as Jack nuzzled up tight against Gabriel’s chest and leeched off his warmth.

“Yeah, but to be fair, we were also pumped full of those shitty super soldier chemicals that almost made us indestructible,” Jack chuckled back, the two of them listening to Hana calmly but with hard tinge of anxiety, start to mark the meka’s integrity and system status as she fell deeper and deeper in.

“Well almost,” Gabriel sighed.

Right…

An invasive memory flashed across Gabriel’s mind. Red hair and a sharp smile that cut like a scalpel, words ‘a cure for your problem’ ghosted in his ears and syringes filled with black goo stabbing deep into him. Of that first monstrous scream that left his lungs as his DNA was forced to rewrite itself with the introduction of nanites and alien DNA--

But Gabriel shook that loose, gritting his teeth and forcing himself to focus on what was happening around him before he slipped and had another episode. Did not want to test the waters of having two episodes in one day, especially when he had been doing so good lately.

“You alright? Your heart started skipping away,” Jack asked softly.

“Sorry bad memory tried to rear its ugly head,” Gabriel grunted, distracting himself by toying with the silvery layered scales on top of Jack’s head, the ones that people always thought were hair until Jack said otherwise. Jack hissed out ‘ _careful_ ’ like he always did, paranoid about losing scales. Apparently it was a vanity thing like it was for some humans, not to mention Jack’s horns that would come in his later stages of life would come from within the scales and Jack wanted to have the scales cover the base of the horns when they came in. Another vanity/aesthetic thing for his people.

“You good?” Jack asked.

“Yeah,” Gabriel grumbled, lifting his wrist to look at his wrist band, the blank face thankfully grey. Would need to get Angela to check on the sedative levels after being dosed twice in one day. It was a far cry from the early days back in Overwatch and where he needed four or five refills in a day. But back then, it had taken all that tranq to keep Gabriel… _Gabriel_ and not… that.

“Okay nope! Nope! NOPE!” Hana suddenly screamed over the stream as she rocketed out of the volcano, flinging molten material everywhere. Bastion chirped sharply, whistling irratibly as Hana’s meka shook off the molten material and she ejected. “Tests good, never make me do that again!”

Bastion beeped at her angrily for almost getting molten material on them, the stream treated to a rather long spiel of various sounds on Bastion’s part while Hana seemed to genuinely seem remorseful.

Gabriel pressed a kiss to Jack’s forehead before cutting the stream, changing it to something else.

* * *

“How are you feeling, Gabriel?”

Gabriel twiddled his thumbs, avoiding eye contact with the therapist, sitting neat and proper in her chair. Angela was sitting in the corner, keeping an ear on both of them while also looking over his latest blood tests. It had been an assurance, despite the against usual therapy protocol, that had let Gabriel first feel safe enough to attend these meetings when he had been dragged to Overwatch and then kept him feeling safe enough to keep at them, enough to make progress. It would not be much longer until they were doing this over holo-call and perhaps not that much longer that Gabriel would be deemed stable enough to not need half the things they had him on to keep him… stable.

“Any chances I should know about?” The therapist tried again.

“Nope,” Gabriel said, scratching at his beard.

“Absolute nothing?” The therapist questioned, cocking a neat little eyebrow.

“...Had an attack, but nothing happened,” Gabriel grumbled,

“That is good, very good, Mr. Reyes,” The therapist said, scribbling something down on her notepad. 

Old fashioned pen and paper, another thing that had been done for Gabriel’s comfort. During the first few meetings, Gabriel had been hyper paranoid about anyone possibly sending reports about his progress to anyone high up on the Overwatch command chain, and holo pads could do just that in a nanosecond. Back then Gabriel had been healthily paranoid about being thrown onto yet another medical table or someone decided that he did not deserve the second chance that he had thrust upon him when Jack dragged him back to Overwatch, kicking and screaming by his hair. Gabriel had needed the assurance of that stupid old notebook and that old pen.

Remembering half the stuff that people had done to comfort him, and still did to this day, just made Gabriel cringe a little, for several various reason.

“You’re approaching a year mark of having no remarkable incidents,” The therapist said, looking at her notes. “Extremely remarkable progress, Mr. Reyes. Are you going to do anything to celebrate?”

“I thought about taking the hubby out to dinner but… it just seems like a weird thing to celebrate,” Gabriel shrugged, scratching his beard irritability. “Look! For a whole goddamn year I haven’t turned into that eldritch fucking nightmare Reaper! You know, that thing that until about five years ago, everyone I’m working with now, _everyone_ , was hunting and more than willing to kill?”

“Exactly, over a year without incident, over four years without incident and injury,” The therapist said calmly, ignoring his outburst. “I suggest celebrating, but nothing too stressful.”

Gabriel just grunted. He hated how she was right. This lady cut through his bullshit every time, tough love like Angela had said would get through his thick skull. It was because of this therapist and Angela that Gabriel had made as much progress as he had though, so Gabriel happily took it.

“Any nightmares I should know about?” The therapist asked.

“Nothing that I remember. Only wake up slightly panicked and tired.”

“Sleeping?”

“I have this clingy husband that keeps me in bed against my will and makes me sleep.”

“Eating?”

“Well enough, the rations here suck though.”

“Very good. How is your teaching going?”

“Good, those guys are almost ready to hit the field. Proud of all of them.”

“Very good.”

They went back and forth for the rest of their scheduled meeting time. Simple questions to show that he was still making good progress or at least not regressing like he had done in the past. Keeping up healthy habits and healthy communications with other operatives, eating and sleeping as much as he could, taking care of himself and making sure that he was doing right by Jack. She wanted him to be a bit more social in general, but she always wanted him to be a bit more social, it was something of a joke between them at this point. 

The therapist did ask about the attack, Gabriel grunting out that this was a brief snippet of the memory of the meeting between Reaper and Soldier 76 that had led to his second chance. The meeting that told Soldier 76 that the monster that he had been hunting was breaking down mentally, chasing down Jack to get his brains blow out and his misery ended. That Reaper was Gabriel, trapped in a tormented spiral. Apparently it was a good thing to remember, all things considering, and he guessed she was right. It had been the break in a long period of darkness.

When that time came, the therapist let him go, Angela following him out.

“Hmm, need to check up on Amelie, she’s been on a new medication lately and I want to make sure she’s taking to it well,” Angela hummed.

“You ever stop to take a breath?” Gabriel asked, grinning when Angela shot him a hard look but with a smirk.

“Not really,” They both paused as Jack pounced from where he was waiting in the hallway and wrapped himself around Gabriel. “There’s hardly ever a moment’s peace for me.”

“That therapist tells me all the time that I need a vacation, I think she needs to start telling you instead,” Gabriel teased, getting nudged hard.

“I was thinking of it, Temperance is ready to take over for me, but Amelie needs me personally and I’m hesitant to leave her in the hands of anyone just yet.”

“We also don’t want our main go to doctor to lost her shit because she’s stressed to hell,” Jack pointed out, playfully and lightly smacking at Angela’s arm with his tail. She smacked back, the two going at it until eventually Angela ended up shoving the end of the tail down the collar of Gabriel’s hoodie to keep it away from her. Angela smirked when Gabriel made a surprised squawk as the tail wriggled around within the confines of his hoodie.

“Very true as well… I’ll think about it, but Amelie really does need a steady person in her life. I’ll make sure she’s okay with work with Temperance. In the meantime, how about you two go out tonight to celebrate?”

“Oh fine,” Gabriel groaned. “Hey boo, you want to go out to eat some place tonight?”

“Mmm, that steak place because it has that fish I can eat,” Jack purred against his ear. “I’ll wear that outfit you like.”

“Whelp, looks like it’s a date,” Gabriel grinned as Jack nuzzled against his neck.

* * *

They did end up napping before their dinner date, resting tired and weary bones, before getting up to get dressed.

Gabriel had a simple suit, nothing special but also not terrible, that he wore for things like this. Black and white with a simple black-tie that he had had foisted upon him in the first two years of being back with Overwatch. Something for formal appearances during a couple hundred meetings with Overwatch’s higher ups as people exclaimed time and time again that Gabriel was safe to have on grounds. After that and his reunion and subsequent reconnection of their relationship, it had been used for gentle dates and formal group events with his friends and coworkers.

Jack, with his humanoid like but not completely shape, had a special get up. A black shirt with the spaces along along the spine to let his spines sit comfortably and a pair of black pants that had space for his tail. Neat, simple, clean, and not with the cumbersome layers that made Jack freak out. Also, tailored suits were far too much time and money wise for Jack to want to deal with.

Not to mention neither of them went anywhere that warranted fancier duds. Honestly the fancier place they went too was the steak place and honestly and that place was just slightly fancier than a chain restaurant. 

Which also meant that they did not need to go through the hassles of a reservation, those were always a hot mess to deal with since people saw Jack Morrison or Gabriel Reyes and lost their shit about ‘war heroes’ coming in.

Nope, just a nice dinner that was not crappy military food in a place that was not bustling with too many people.

“You know, this makes me wonder…” Gabriel said after they had been seated. Jack’s tail latched onto his leg and squeezed. “Neither of us care much for extravagant stuff. What are we going to do for our anniversary coming up in a few weeks?”

“Mmm, wouldn’t mind a trip back home for it. Nice and sunny, warm too,” Jack said.

“Alien corn hell, huh?” Gabriel snarked, grinning when Jack kicked him underneath the table. “I never mind going to your home planet, boo. Though if we wanted to do what we usually do and take two weeks off for it, we better volunteer to take the next trip out to space to get our time in.”

“We’ll shoot Winston a message after dinner, yeah?”

Dinner went without much fanfare. They chatted between bites, mostly about what they were going to do on their vacation, which was mostly being lazy, with a few ‘alien corn hell’ jokes from Gabriel that had Jack laughing and playfully kicking at him underneath the table. They chatted about possible missions that they would have in their stint out in space, hoping that they got the light load instead of being stuck in another hostage situation.

“I actually wouldn’t mind one where I can shoot with my gun,” Jack said between bites of fish. “Sick of being stuck in situations where I have to use my talons and shit.”

“Eh, I don’t mind my guns not seeing any use,” Gabriel shrugged, reaching over to dab some mess from the corner of Jack’s mouth. The textured tip of Jack’s tongue caught it before Gabriel could bring his hand back, smirking at Gabriel’s playful grossed out expression before they chuckled together. “But yeah, would rather not be stuck on another shit merchant ship with one wrong move spacing anyone.”

“Who knows, maybe we’ll see some Talon assholes,” Jack grinned, squeezing his tail and thus Gabriel’s leg.

“I would not saying no to shooting grapefruit sized holes in a few of those bastards,” Gabriel smirked.

“Yeah,” Jack smirked back before the two husbands went back to their dinner.


	4. It turns out, even in space, people can still hear you scream- (nsfw)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Language, slight body horror, self loathing, canon typical violence
> 
> NSFW WARNING: mlm smut, trans characters, oral sex, 69ing, fingering, strap-on usage, penetrative sex

Their next deployment they were going to go out with Ana, Reinhardt, Angela and Torbjorn.

“Alright team, you’re going to hit a Talon facility on this planet,” Winston said as they sat in the meeting room beforehand. On the holo-screen there was a building nearly hidden by nearly black fauna on a dark lit planet, what little visibility coming from a very small and dim looking sun/moon thing. The photos were lackluster at best, but they had gone on much more dangerous ops with a lot less information. 

Though if it was that dark on the planet then Jack would need to cover up to hide his natural bioluminescence, would not want to give away their position because Jack looked like a big blue glow stick in any thin excuse for darkness. Besides that, thankfully Jack and Gabriel had natural darkvision to deal with the lowlight. The rest of the team would need some form of night vision goggles to let them see. Their equipment would also need a quick color coat to let them blend in.

“Smash and run missions,” Gabriel huffed quietly.

“Exactly,” Winston said, making Gabriel jolt. Right, the big scientist’s super hearing. “I need you to go in, disable the alarms, retrieve any information that you can get, sabotage the facility and then get out. While you do not need to take out any Talon operatives you may find, I cannot stress how important it is to take down this facility at all costs. We need to cut down Talon’s presence in this sector, it will help when we tackle their presence in the cluster and then system.”

“Oh boy, haven’t done a system take down in awhile,” Torbjorn gruffed out. “Things are about to get exciting, ey?”

“With our senior field operatives going to be retired here in the next fives years, I wanted to take out this problem system,” Winston said. “While I have full confidence in our upcoming generation of heroes and field operatives, a mission like this needs your skills.”

“We’ll handle this, no worries dear,” Ana smiled.

“I trust all of you to get this done to the best of your combined abilities, but be safe out there, dismissed.”

“Time to get dressed up in style,” Gabriel joked as everyone headed out to take care of their gear.

“Black is not always classy or stylish, you old goth,” Ana laughed.

“Excuse you, but it is,” Gabriel retorted through a grin. “And you’re all about to find out because I still unofficially help with alterations to everyone’s gear.”

There was a collective but good natured groan from the group as they went to get ready for deployment. It had been awhile for any of them that they had gone an actual specific mission. For the most part, Winston had been trying to ease the newer operatives into harder and skill heavy need missions while the older operatives got to (gratefully) take the easier and more general work. This was the first big thing that they would, knowingly walk into, for awhile.

“I’m shooting people. Paint my gun black all you want, babe, but I’m shooting people,” Jack said as they readied their gear.

“I know, I know, but your gun is still getting painted black- er, this off black purple color. Black doesn't’ blend into the shadows like everyone thinks. We also need to dim down the lightshow too, while we’re at it. Seriously, I leave for a couple of years and it looks like all of you are going on a tactical rave.”

“Untis-untis-untis,” Torbjorn muttered sarcastically.

Overwatch had never really had a mandate for the older Overwatch operative’s armor, something about them being stubborn old assholes stuck in their ways and it really was no use trying to change them, thus the lightshow. Now they needed to alter all their custom gear to do this mission, put on some temporary color over the lighter colors and dimming down the lights in armor to help them sneak into the facility. Though none of that was hard, though Angela ended up fighting with the wings of her Valkyrie system to tone down the ‘feather lights’.

When they were done, they ended up looking a lot of the old Blackwatch uniforms, all dark colors though with more purple than red. It brought back some bitter memories for Gabriel, who remembering getting McCree’s black duds as he was settling down and helping Genji paint on black and red onto all his prosthetic bits as the man simmered with still hot wrath. Of putting black and red on the rejects of society and people shunned by Overwatch, of people angry at everything and giving them a home, a place to fit in and be accepted. That mounting anger that eventually Gabriel took into himself and let manifest…

But now was not that time and there was a danger, an extreme one, in Gabriel going back and reliving memories. Right now there were asses that needed to be kicked and they were finally dressed for it.

“The planet that we’re going to has low oxygen levels, the team will need breathing apparati while we are planetside,” Angela said as they gathered the rest of their gear before heading to the ship. “Local flora is thankfully are non-irritants to human and non-human skin, though I still highly suggest that no one ingest anything. There is minimal knowledge of local fauna, though based on the planet’s ecosystem, it would be highly suggestive that they are excellent hiders and thus we should use caution. Do not engage if we find them while approaching the Talon base.”

“You hear that Jack? You see something that looks like prey from back home and you don’t eat it,” Gabriel chuckled before getting his thigh smacked with Jack’s tail.

“It was one time, and it looked like an earth rat. I didn’t know it’d be poisonous.”

“You’re quite lucky that you’re of a hardy disposition, Jack,” Angela dryly muttered. “The doctors from your planet are still stunned to this day that you lived.”

“I survived being spaced, why is everyone surprised that I lived basically through advanced food poisoning?”

“You would be surprised by how the mighty have fallen from bug bites,” Angela said, “Remind me to tell you the tale of Rasputin one day.”

“Wasn’t that a god AI?”

“No, but they really wanted to name the Russian god AI that.”

“Okay, now you have to tell me about this Rasputin person.”

* * *

Gabriel had been on a lot of different planets in a lot of different parts of his life. Heat planets, cold planets, flora infested planets, planets full of life and planets that were dead. The crisis, Overwatch, Blackwatch… _Talon_ , he had been sent all over, survived all over, fought and killed and rescued and saved lives all over. It was hard to come across someone as seasoned as him.

Still, always an amazement to see a new planet. Gabriel felt that same amazement now as he took in this new planet where the Talon base was stationed, dark even as they entered its atmosphere in a small and stealth cruiser that had departed from the main ship. A low burning and small sun and a small cluster of three moons meant that the planet probably had an extremely long night and short days, probably explained the extremely dark flora as well, had to suck up what little sun there was when it was there. Good thing they were equipped to deal with the darkness, though that meant Talon probably was too unless they were getting sloppy, unlikely.

“I don’t like that Talon has the advantage on us by knowing the environment more,” Gabriel grumbled as they slowly descended. “Low light environment, unknown alien life forms. Not the worst mission but this is Talon…”

“We can take whatever they dish out,” Jack gruffed next to him.

“Yeah, probably… but something doesn’t feel right,” Gabriel grumbled. Call it instinct, call it intuition, call it nerves about going up against Talon, but something in the back of Gabriel’s mind was nagging at him, louder and clearer the closer they got to the planet, that this was a bad idea. Made his skin itch too in a way he hoped was not the nanites being agitated and was just raw nerves.

“We’ll be cautious, this mission needs to be done right, not fast,” Ana said from the pilot's seat. “Though speed would be nice. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t like running missions longer than necessary.”

“Yeah and I don’t like being near Talon,” Gabriel grumbled. “While Ana touches down, let’s get suit up team.”

Gabriel’s nerves kept egging him even as he got suited up with the team, even as Ana found a nice concealed spot to touch down and hide their little ship, choosing to stay with the ship in case they needed a quick getaway. Even when they filed out into the dark flora and started the quiet march towards the base. 

They had rebreathers on to keep them from getting dizzy, and eventually passing out according to Angela, so they could not smell the flora around them as they crept towards where the base was located in the dark jungle. But it felt chilly, even through the gear, at least to Gabriel it felt chilly and it did not do anything for his nerves. Felt too much like the chill that the nanites had kept hi-... kept ‘Reaper’s’ body at back then to keep them functioning well. All of this was just setting him further and further on edge and Gabriel kept looking at the blank faced waistband of his just to make sure that he was not being subtly dosed with nanite tranq as the feeling persisted. Thankfully nothing so far.

Gabriel clutched the handles to his shotgun tighter, gritted his teeth and muscled on like a good soldier as they trekked further and further into the jungle, careful to disturb anything too much as not to alert any Talon forces. There was just the sounds of their boots scuffing the ground as they walked further and further on, the small hisses of their rebreathers as they walked and the occasionally eerie song like call of the native animals that were thankfully avoiding them. At least everything was going smoothly so far.

The base was built into the side of a smaller mountain and hidden from sight, the flora having, likely, purposefully grown over the walls and such to further hide it from sight. They stayed away for a time, Jack zooming in and watching the perimeter of the building for any signs of activity or any defences. It looked like, since the building was covered in flora, that cameras and turrets were a no go, though Jack’s visor did tell them that there looked like lazar traps and rudimentary traps hidden with low lying heathers and heaths along the jungle floor. But they could have also tried to keep things low tech to avoid detection.

With the base staked out, they crept forward based on the path that Jack’s visor had picked up, avoiding everything point out before until they managed to find a vent close to where the mountain met building. Looked like it was frequently cleared of plant life, based on the sharp ending vines that just barely reached the grating. They pulled the grating off, Jack slipping inside and shuffling through the vent that it was attached for a moment, going quiet for a moment until a door opened a few feet away. The rest of the team slipped inside and signaled Jack to close the door before creeping further inside. Jack joined them after wriggling around in the vents some more, joining them as they crept along a darkly lit maintenance hallway that looked rusted from misuse and improper care.

Their first encounter with any Talon operatives were two patrolling guards. Gabriel and Jack grabbed one each and snapped their necks before stuffing the corpses inside a utility closet. Quick, easy, let Angela, Reinhardt and Torbjorn slip down the hallway without a fuss after them. This was going smoothly so far and Gabriel kept it at that to not jinx anything. But still, when they reached the end of a hallway with a locked door that Torbjorn had to rip open a keypad to get open, Gabriel tapped Jack’s shoulder to get his attention. When Jack looked to him, Gabriel hooked his fingers around the back of his husband’s neck and brought their foreheads together with a small ‘knock’. Good luck. Jack’s tail coiled briefly around his thigh and squeezed to reassure him before the door slid open.

The next room was larger and wider and openly guarded by two bored guards playing cards. They were so focused on their game that the team slipped right by them along the edges of the wall and into the next hallway. Looked cleaner and more used. Jack scanned for heat signatures through the walls, leading them through a side door instead of the one on the other end of the hall and taking them through a route that looked sparsely patrolled. Talon guards were easily dispatched along the way.

Too easy…

They managed to reach a room with a terminal. Not the main hub for information but a small spot that they could, or their hacker could, steal into the system and take what they needed. They crammed into the room and shut the door behind them as Angela reached into her bag and pulled out the small disk with a purple sugar skull painted on the surface. She carefully placed it on the back of the old monitor and clicked it on.

“ _One sec,_ ” Sombra whispered over their comms.

The screen lit up purple and Sombra’s signature sugar skull appeared before disappearing into the purple. They patiently waited for Sombra to carefully hack her way through the security systems, looking for what they needed. Jack’s tail wrapped around Gabriel’s thigh again and squeezed as they waited. Too easy, too quiet. Talon went out with a growling bang, Gabriel knew this too well. Missions never went this well with Talon. Blood, guts, bullets, carnage and firefights were how they always went down, even the supposedly quiet ops like this one.

Too easy…

The sugar skull appeared again and the screen went back to a pale blue, Angela retrieving the remote hacking device and putting it back in her bag.

“ _Got everything but there’s something weird going on. The base recently cleared out a lot of troops and for some reason. And there was a memo put out just two hours ago. ‘An old friend is returning. Be prepared for it.’_ ”

“...Let’s sabotage the core and leave. That doesn’t bode well,” Gabriel quietly said.

“Alright, let’s move.”

Sombra had downloaded a blueprint of the building and sent it Jack’s way, so they could quickly and very quietly head towards the power core of the building in their basement. In the very back of the basement was a standard though small fusion core humming away, letting off a tepid warmness. Torbjorn looked it over for a moment, eyeing it up and down as he undoubtedly broke it down in his mind before pulling out his tools from his belt and started the real thing.

The room was filled with the low hum of the core, Torbjorn’s tinkering and then their breathing and shuffling as they remained tense for any fights.

Too ea--

“ _Welcome back, Agent Reaper._ ”

Something crackled along Gabriel’s skin, akin to to standing too close to where lightning has struck down and then he pitched forward as a familiar heaviness took over him. Gabriel collapsed to the ground and wheezed as numbness over took him, his wristband beeping loudly and angrily, the face lighting up a dark bloody red. Jack was hovering over him in a fraction of a second, rolling him on his back as the wristband screamed its little beeping scream and the rest of the team braced for enemy attack.

Too easy… he was fucking right.

“Gabriel?” Angela asked while white knuckle gripping her dinky pistol.

“Gabe,” Jack said, bending down and hunching over him as the tranqs took over and made him too numb to think or twitch.

The door opened and about half a dozen Talon goons flocked by two people Gabriel had hoped to never seen again, filling the room with dark armor wearing assholes armed to the teeth with too many guns for them to deal with.

“Welcome back, Reaper,” Moira smiled almost sweetly, but Gabriel knew her better. Moira’s smiles were more the manifestation of bad decisions about to be made and someone was likely to about to get hurt. “So glad that you have joined us again.”

Akande stared down Reinhardt, probably ready to take down their tank if he so much as flinched wrong. Gabriel found it hard to move as he looked at all of this upside down, blood being drenched in nanite tranqs. Everything felt sluggish and was getting slower and slower as the tranqs took effect. Even Jack moving to crouch right on top of him, baring that mouth full of shark teeth and hissing seemed to slow down to a molasse like crawl.

“Strange, he’s not reacting to the signal,” Akande said, still not breaking eye contact with Reinhardt.

“I was right about Dr. Ziegler introducing a counter measure then,” Moira smiled, icy sharp. “Don’t worry, Reaper, soon you will be yourself again.”

“You’re not going to have him,” Angela growled out, leveling her pistol at Moira’s head.

“My dear, while I am a great admirer of your work and what you do, I’m afraid I win in this situation. Right now a signal is playing on too low a frequency for humans to hear, agitating the nanites in Reaper’s body and forcing him to experience an intense fight or flight response. A stress response that his body cannot ignore and will react the only way it knows how.”

Jack hissed, low and deep, tail thrashing wildly. Gabriel’s fingers twitched uselessly, a deep rage filling him to the brim at being rendered so helpless, about Moira still trying to use him after these past few years. And if that signal kept playing then the tranqs would soon get burned through as the nanites fought to defend him. Over a fucking year without incident and now it was fucking ruined, progress ruined--

Steel talons dug into the floor underneath of him, clawing up concrete like a hot knife through butter.

“Fuck you, Moira,” Angela spat back.

“Now, now, language Dr. Ziegler,” Moira smiled. “Now, we’re going to take Reaper back. I have a few ideas of how to make his true state… permanent. As well as more powerful.”

Gabriel felt parts of his face going hard like bone, the scales forming that would form his ‘mask’ quick like as the tranqs were burned through, the wristband blaring loudly to indicate that it had nothing more to use on him. A demonic growl managed to escape his chest.

“Double fuck you,” Torbjorn gruffed out, the core sputtering and the sharply humming and glowing brightly. Apparently people ignoring Torbjorn, much like the man always said, lead to the downfall of civilizations. Or at least in this case, about twenty some odd Talon assholes. “Because this core is going to blow and make this place highly inhospitable in about three minutes.”

Moira gritted her teeth, her grunts clearly shaken because this was clearly no hollow threat, not with what horrendous noises that the core was making or how the room was getting warmer and better lit by it. Akande kept looking from Moira to Reinhardt and looked like he was about to call in a ‘strategic retreat’.

“Are you ready to die for him?” Angela taunted, pistol still aimed at Moira’s head.

Moira huffed before snapping her fingers. Her grunts fled the room with their goddamn tails between their legs, Akande glaring at their group once before turning and quickly leaving with the grunts. Moira sneered darkly at them.

“I have other projects, of course. But know this, Reaper, I still control you. With this signal tested, I can perfect it. Do not expect our next visit to go as well as this.”

She turned to leave and a shot rang out. Moira still jumped from the plasma bolt nearly skitting her ear but just quickly left. With Moira gone, Angela holstered her smoking pistol and rushed over to him, pulling out another wristband from her pouches at her waist and quickly snapping it on. The return of the potent numbness was welcomed as Jack hauled him onto his back and then their group ran like hell to escape the base.

Gabriel had been propped up next to one of the windows in the shuttle as Ana took off, eye sluggishly watched the shuttle blast off into space and the hidden Talon place blew up into pieces. While Gabriel wished Moira was still in there, he knew she was harder to kill than a cockroach. She was still out there and she was still looking to ruin his life...

* * *

“Mission success, but this victory is sour.”

Gabriel tried to ignore Angela as she spoke with Winston over the comms, staring sullenly at the ceiling. Jack was dragging claws against his bare chest, dragging across the bone formations out of the black mottled skin that refused to go away even when Gabriel had been tranqed to hell. Thankfully the uselessly fucking wings that normally formed Reaper’s ‘coat’ had not fully formed. And the talons had not fully taken over his fingers, just made the tips of his fingers and his nails like metal. Even the bone like scales of Reaper’s ‘mask’ had not fully formed, just patches of across his cheeks and forehead… but it was enough.

A fucking year without incident. A whole fucking year without incident. Four years without ‘Reaper’ injuring people. And sure, no one got hurt, but a whole fucking year without incident… down the goddamn drain because Moira could not leave him alone. Sure, Gabriel had stubbornly held onto the delusion that she had, that somewhere out there some other poor bastard was Moira’s pet project, that somewhere out there that a ‘Reaper 2.0’, anything, just that it was not him anymore.

“We got the data and we destroyed the base. According to scans, twelve Talon agents were killed when the base was nuked. Roughly twenty agents were taken out in total. However…”

“ _Let’s hear it._ ”

“Moira had a low frequency signal that triggered an attack within Officer Reyes and forced a partial change. His wristband stopped a complete one. But Moira seems to still be interested in Officer Reyes and said that she would perfect the signal and I worry…”

“ _That the next encounter will be final?_ ”

“Yes. We’ve made so much progress with Gabriel, Winston. I haunts me to think that Moira is striving to ruin his life yet again.”

“ _Yes, it is and also disturbing. The best we can do is pull Officer Reyes off active duty and keep him on base while we set up new missions to hunt Moira down to arrest her and seize her work before she can harm Reyes again. I… may not have the same friendship with Reyes as you do, but I understand that he is a good Officer, a good man trying to right his wrongs and is well loved on the base. I do not want to lose Officer Reyes to Moira anymore than you do, Dr. Ziegler._ ”

“My thanks, Winston.”

“ _You can continue your missions or return to base to get Reyes out of space. All I ask is that an eye is kept out for Talon and Moira in the meantime._ ”

“My thanks, Winston.”

“ _Safe journeys._ ”

When Angela stepped back into the room and found him conscious, she scowled but not at him. Instead she stepped over to his unoccupied side to look at his wrist band, gingerly lifting up his arm to do so. The surface was a very soft pink. Satisfied, she gently smacked Jack’s hand off his chest, getting a hiss from the indignant alien, before carefully examining the partially transformed bits.

“Believe it or not, you are shifting back,” Angela murmured after a moment, probably noticing his scowl. “Slowly but surely.”

“Great, I was just starting to--” Gabriel cut himself off with a grumble. It would not be fair of him to be a dick to Angie and his therapist was always harping on him to cut down the self deprecating bullshit. “This is bullshit.”

“I know,” Angela sighed, patting his chest. “I would have thought that Moira would have tired of chasing you when she heard with the rest of the galaxy that you were with Overwatch again. That she would have moved onto her other ‘projects’.”

“What can I say? I’m a one of a kind, freak of nature,” Gabriel grumbled.

“Stop that,” Jack snapped, flicking his nose.

“Exactly, stop that,” Angela mimicked. “You are unique as are your circumstances. Nothing more, nothing less. And Moira is going to have to get through a lot of people to get to you, Gabriel.”

“I know… I know,” Gabriel sighed, “I’m… scared.”

“Of?”

“Everything.”

* * *

Gabriel was ship bound until they rotated back home, not that he minded. The little bits of that asshole Reaper were taking their sweet time to disappear and Reaper had been something of a terror across several galaxies, so it was in Gabriel’s best interest to not show bits of that monster around people. Especially people that had called for Overwatch’s help. Or around Talon, since now he knew they were out for him.

So while everyone went about their missions for the month out, Gabriel ship sat. Thankfully there was more than enough to do on his end so that he was not bored out of his skull. Running comms and reports back to base, using the ship’s sensors to detect enemy/life where the team was going planetside, checking on the ship to see if they needed to hit a port or not. Mundane things that helped Gabriel keep his sanity as the clock ticked down for them to return to base.

“You know, Winston will probably still let us have our anniversary vacation,” Jack said nonchalantly to Gabriel as they lay in bed one evening. Gabriel was grading tests on a holopad to try and get his agitated mind to calm down enough to actually sleep. Jack’s tail coiled around Gabriel’s wrist holding up the holopad and pulled until Gabriel relented and looked at him. “But we might end up having to take some of the others with us.”

“Who would want to go?” Gabriel muttered, relenting and putting the holopad aside to curl up against Jack.

“We can take your weird ass adoptees,” Jack suggested, getting a huff from Gabriel.

“McCree, Genji and Sombra are hardly a fit team to watch over us,” Gabriel pointed out, “And if we take their s/o’s with us, we’re taking half the fully trained field operatives with us.”

“True…” Jack turned to nuzzle against his throat, purring softly. “Want me to blow you to relax?”

“I’m way too tense for that,” Gabriel groaned, “But it’s tempting.”

“Just trying to help, I hate seeing you this racked with stress.”

“I know… but I’m good like this.”

Jack purred softly, curling around him tightly, tail finding anchor around his leg. When the lights dimmed, Jack’s brilliant bioluminescence picked up, glowing vivid and bright blue in the darkness of their room. Gabriel nuzzled into Jack’s smooth skin, enjoying the presence of the man in his arms and the calming effect that Jack had on him. Even now his nerves were calming and thoughts of Moira quickly quieted and were forgotten.

“...Satya, Fareeha, Sombra, Ame and Angie?”

Gabriel snorted softly.

“Oh come on! The girls are always going on about wanting to take a nice vacation together and this could be a chance for Angie to get one while keeping an eye on Ame,” Jack huffed against his skin.

“We’ll figure it out,” Gabriel soothed.

“Hmm… I’d say the those Junker boys but I like my planet in on piece… Ana, Reinhardt, Torbjorn and Bridgette? Zarya, Mei, Satya and Fareeha? Oh, how about Lena, Hana, Lucio and Zenyatta? How about--”

“Jack please,” Gabriel laughed, “We’ll figure it out when we get back home.”

“...Hey Gabe?”

“Yes, boo?”

“Do you think pigeons have feelings?”

Jack laughed loudly when Gabriel pulled away to start smacking him with a pillow, his husband only half heartedly defending himself against the onslaught until Jack begged for mercy between tearful peals of laughter. Panting, Gabriel hovered over Jack, grinning down at the still giggling alien. Jack stuck his tongue out at him, grinning with that mouth full of sharp teeth as the last of the chuckles died down.

“Why do I put up with you?” Gabriel chuckled.

“Uh,” Jack lifted up his hand and pointed at the gold band sitting on his finger, grinning crookedly. “You agreed too.”

“Hmm, guess I did,” Gabriel hummed, taking that hand to kiss the wedding band and then Jack’s scaly palm.

Jack purred loudly, pleased with the affectionate gesture, before Gabriel bent down to kiss his face as well, peppering kisses along the smooth skin and scales.

“You still up for messing around?” Gabriel asked against Jack’s cheek.

* * *

Smut Start

* * *

“Hell yeah, let me just--”

“Wanna top?”

Jack grinned crookedly, squirming out of bed to go hunting through his bag for a bit. After digging around, Jack rumbled in victory and came back to bed with the strap-on and harness, grinning when Gabriel flopped on his back and let Jack climb back in bed and squirm between his legs. Gabriel grinned up at Jack, letting’s Jack’s talon tipped hands part his thighs and draw them up over his own.

“You sure?” Jack purred.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m in the mood and don’t feel like thinking,” Gabriel grinned, squeezing Jack’s sides with his thighs.

Jack purred roughly above him, running hands over his thighs before bending over to kiss him.

It took some awkward wiggling to get undressed, neither of them willing to part from the other. When they did, they had to squirm around to get comfortable enough for the next part, find a comfortable position, though ending up 69ing it for comfort like always. Gabriel had to open himself up, Jack good with his claws but Gabriel always leery of having those super sharp talons inside of him. But Jack was more than willing to help along, opening his mouth and working that tongue of his wherever it could reach, sometimes lapping at the finger and then fingers Gabriel was working in and out of himself. Gabriel still cheekily lapped at Jack’s slit until the flesh petaled open and kept licking and sucking along the flesh.

Gabriel knew his own body enough when to call himself good, patting Jack’s thigh to let him know and gingerly pull himself away from Jack’s mouth, careful of Jack’s sharp teeth as always. Then they squirmed around until Jack was hovering over Gabriel and Gabriel’s legs were wrapped around the man’s waist. The strap-on was snapped on with the harness and they rutted against one another for a moment, enjoying the sensations.

“Good?” Jack rumbled.

“Yeah,” Gabriel moaned back.

Jack was slow, Gabriel always loved that. Sex with Jack was always great but when they switched Gabriel always loved that Jack was slow and tender, drawing it out and making it romantic and syrupy and made it so easy to forget about everything and drown in it. They kissed, Jack almost muttering some shit about ‘you dick was in my mouth’ before Gabriel was sucking on that textured tongue and practically sucking the breath out of Jack’s lungs. Gabriel muttered something back about ‘and your dick was in my mouth’ between kisses.

Gabriel was loose and languid and a hell of a lot calmer when he came, rutting his hips down on the strap-on to work through the waves of his orgasm and draw it out. His rutting was enough to get Jack to cum too, growling against his mouth and rocking his hips back up into Gabriel to ride out his own. They collapsed in the bed, wrapped around one another, panting. They kissed when they had caught their breath a bit more, sloppy and languid and just right. They snuggled for a moment before pulling away to clean up and then sluggishly making it to the cramped showers in their cabin.

* * *

Smut end

* * *

“Love you, Gabe.”

“Love you too, Jackie.”


	5. Happy Endings Do Come True (No seriously I mean it)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Mentioned body horror, mentioned poor mental health, language
> 
> Old Soldiers do retire after all

Hanzo, McCree, Genji, Zenyatta and Sombra were set up to start a party that would hunt down Moira, Akande and any other big players of Talon still left over. They were highly trained, especially at covert operations, ruthless and more than a little personally motivated to hunt these lingering bastards down. They were a good team, highly cooperative and driven, highly skilled and damned good at what they did. 

There was a comfort in that it was them… and a worry.

McCree, Genji and Sombra were pretty much Gabriel’s kids and sure they had their own blood family, but he loved them like his own. If anything happened to them… damned be the consequences but he would hunt Moira down himself and rip her apart with his own bare hands. But Gabriel trusted them to know their own limits and skills and to do this mission or admit that they could not. 

Still, father like instincts nagged at Gabriel as they boarded one of the stealth flight ships for the mission while Reinhardt, Ana, Jack and himself threw their things together onto a small ship that would whisk them away to Jack’s planet for their vacation. Thankfully Reinhardt and Ana were more than willing to go to back the two of them up if Talon pulled a dick move and decided to take them while they were on their anniversary trip. Thankfully, at least, Gabriel remembered Jack’s planet having a decent military and planetary defense in place.

“Comms?” Winston asked.

“Check,” Jack said.

“Secondary comms?”

“Check,” Ana said, holding up the spare devices before they went into her bag.

“Emergency comms?”

“Check!” Reinhardt beamed, showing the bulkier emergency comms before they went into his bag.

“Weapons, armor and ammo with extra ammo?”

“Check,” He said, holding open at least his own bag that had his shotguns and as many shotgun plasma cells that he could sanely fit in next to them.

“Hmm, alright. I wish you luck. If anything should arise, please contact us- er. Contact and alert Morrison’s people first and then us. We want to help should anything go wrong or unwanted guests arrive but we also don’t want any diplomatic nightmares on our hands.”

“You got it boss,” Gabriel gruffed out, heaving his weapons bag over one shoulder.

Winston was as about as socially graceful as either Jack or Gabriel, which was to say... not at all. So the big creature just bobbed his head in a sort of farewell before shuffling off, leaving the four of them to finish loading up the shuttle. They already had their bags but when you had four paranoid old soldiers on high alert because of a certain Talon member, you could never have enough firepower, armor, ammo and a few explosive surprises in store. This way they could relax in peace… sort of. As well as any of them could relax, anyway.

“Alright, ready to go?” Ana called from the pilot's seat.

“Let’s go.”

* * *

Gabriel liked trying to point out clusters, constellations, suns and planets to Jack when they were on long shuttle rides. It was something of game to pass the time as they just watched space go by the shuttle. Sometimes when they were antsier or in worse moods they would keep count or score and sometimes use it to vent or argue about whatever it was that was really bothering them. Most of the time it was just pointing out memorable planets and such and sometimes exchanging stories about being there or hearing some wild tale from there.

“Jax-4,” Jack said, pointing to the distant planet, rich blues swirled with the golden cloud coverage. “They make serious bank on their fake gold weather.”

“A whole new meaning to golden showers,” Gabriel muttered, grinning when Jack laughed and Ana just sighed from her seat as Reinhardt giggled. When they traveled some more, Gabriel pointed out the other planets. “Jax-5 through 9. In order, their military base in the system, another tourist trap with their ‘red’ weather, commerce, commerce and then uninhabitable.”

“What happened to that one again?”

“War over if it was blood-orange, orange or red weather.”

Jack snorted loudly.

“I’m serious.”

Jack wheezed. Gabriel grinned. Ana sighed from her seat while Reinhardt chuckled. A tail slid underneath Gabriel’s hoodie and he left it be, letting it squeeze around his lower abdomen as he turned back to watch the stars.

Gabriel had liked watching the stars from Earth, it was what provoked him to join the military, for a chance to seem them closer or try and see new ones. Star gazing had been a staple in his relaxing habits since his early SEP days, even when he was strapped to a hospital bed and had half a dozen IVs tied to him, looking out the window and at the night sky had helped him pull through the toughest times. Thinking of those distant stars and plants had given him a wanderlust and a fire in his belly that was only stoked by meeting aliens like Jack.

“Aurelius,” Jack said, pointing out to the soft yellow planet.

A wanting to see more than what Earth offered. A need to explore and do good all across the known galaxies, systems, planets, races.

“Kil,” Gabriel said, pointing to the dark planet.

“Hera.”

“Jux.”

“Tu.”

“Alien Indiana Corn Hell.”

“Hey!” Jack laughed, rufflingly Gabriel’s hair as Ana pulled in towards the rich blue planet that was Jack’s home planet.

“It’s only your planet’s fault. I have yet to see any other planet with a crop that looks exactly like terran corn,” Gabriel laughed.

“It’s nutrient rich and tastes better than that earth crap,” Jack retorted.

“I wouldn’t know. Ain’t that shit toxic?”

“It’s just anthocyanin, you big weenie. Our soil is rich in it.”

“Alright love birds, get your ID chits ready,” Ana called from the front of the shuttle.

“I mean the second they see Jack, we’re good,” Gabriel pointed out.

“Still, rules babe, remember rules,” Jack said, already hunting through his jacket for said chit.

“But I hate going through customs, they always stop me,” Gabriel grumbled. “Those stupid DNA scanners.”

“You’ll be okay, I promise,” Jack said, abandoning his search to kiss Gabriel’s cheek.

* * *

Customs was usually only slightly busy at best and deserted at worst. 

Jack’s planet was not exactly a vacation planet, some parts of it were still wild and filled with lethal plant and wildlife despite how long Jack’s species had been ‘civil’. The plants were hard on most stomachs even with cooking and alteration. Long term habitation was a no go unless you were stocked to hell or you were one of Jack’s people.

Not to mention Jack species had this thing were their older members were terrifying and their children were terrifying and that scared a lot of people off; Older members getting rather large for alien species compared against… well everyone, as well as covered in more spikes, horns and other terrifying things. And as Mei had put it, the babies of the species were screaming balls of teeth and claws. Even common knowledge of the legendary Jack Morrison could not get tourists to the planet and to be honest? The quiet people were just fine with that.

When they got there, the customs building that would allow them out of the landing zone and further into the planet was pretty much deserted. Two bored aliens, one black and a dark almost black blue fading into a pale brownish color and the other black with a dark purple that faded into a pale peachy color, sat at desk that lead to the arch of the DNA scanner. Gabriel swallowed thickly at the sight the silvery and smooth arches that would give him hell like they always did. Jack’s tail squeezed around his leg where it was latched onto before they walked over the desk.

The aliens perked up at the sight of Jack, rasping out that harsh sounding language of theirs. Gabriel’s translator was a few seconds late in translating, but they exchanged formalities with Jack, asking him a few idle chit chat questions. It seemed that they were bored and the purplish alien was new and had not seen one of their own come from off world yet. The three chatted for a moment before the older of the aliens, noted by the horns and generally large size and craggily texture of their scaly skin, beckoned Jack to got through the arch. Gabriel swallowed thickly as Jack stepped through the arch, the machinery dinging pleasantly to notify that Jack had been cleared.

“Next please,” The older alien said politely, voice a harsh draconic like rasp.

Gabriel motioned for Ana and Reinhardt to go before him. Both of them cleared through the gate with no trouble. That meant Gabriel was up next and he could only sigh before looking at the two behind the desk, giving him looks for hesitating.

“I’m about to cause problems and I am so sorry.”

Gabriel stepped through the arch and a harsh beep sounded out that there was a problem from the computer. He quickly stepped back through and sighed as the two behind the computer punched a few things and scowled at the screens.

“Um… your ID chit says your terran, correct?” The younger one asked.

“Yeah,” Gabriel sighed.

“But your DNA signature says… what does this say? Nothing about that is terran.”

Jack leaned against the computer dash, rasping something out in their tongue that translated a moment later into Jack directing them to call one of their superiors to have it explained. After some back and forth, they finally called and after a heated argument, there were several buttons pressed and Gabriel was able to pass through the arch without an alarm going off. Finally.

“Strange that we don’t have that option programmed in,” The older customs officer grumbled, “Sorry about the wait, sir.”

Not wanting to linger, they quickly left the building and went out into the city, Gabriel finding Jack’s hand as they walked.

“You’re still human. Only one of us doesn’t get to be in this relationship,” Jack said.

“...yeah.”

* * *

Jack’s parents had a bit of land out on the wilder edges of civilization. After a long military service, they had bought it and had been farming for a number of years, growing that purple corn like stuff that Gabriel liked to tease Jack about. On one edge of the field was Jack’s folks’ home and on the other was a little house they maintained for when Jack came home with Gabriel in tow. It gave everyone a little bit of privacy at night and was close enough that they could visit during the day. It also had a guest room that Ana and Reinhardt could bunk down in.

Jack’s parents were out tending the fields when they had managed to get to the place as the planet’s two low burning suns were about mid-day for the planet. Gabriel could make out their forms, even over the tall stalks of the purple plants, the sounds of their claws digging up and tilling the earth reaching the group.

“I keep forgetting that your species gets to that size,” Ana said as Jack stealthily stalked into the crops. “And that they grow old enough that they would live to see their children reach their sixties.”

They watched and wait and after a moment, waiting for Jack to complete his little custom of trying to scare his parents. After a moment of waiting, they saw Jack jump up from the purple crops and land on one of them, the larger of the two with horns perfect for gouging and hands and talons longer than two human heads. They were not phazed in the slightest, like the last three times that Gabriel had come here, just using their tail to instead grab Jack and lower him to the ground instead and going back to work.

“He hasn’t been able to do that since the SEP days,” Gabriel chuckled.

After a moment, Jack came back out, looking disappointed in himself. Gabriel grinned and Jack stuck his tongue out at him as they just started the hike to get to the guest house.

The little house was just like Gabriel remembered it. On the smaller side and painted darker greys and purples to make it not stand out and made from that weird plastic looking material that Gabriel knew was stronger than steel. There were still a few claw marks on the doors from the few times that Gabriel had dragged a very drunk Jack inside and his claws or talons had caught and shredded the material. There was some built up dust and debris on the porch that Jack took care of most of a few lazy swipes of his tail. Inside was a bit dusty too, but it was quick to clean the little kitchen area, living room and then the two bedrooms and their bathrooms.

Ana and Reinhardt took to cleaning out the guest room while Jack and Gabriel just dumped their stuff in their room before banging around the kitchen. Thankfully there was still hard pressed and vacuumed rations in the cupboards that turned into a quick and only slightly off putting lunch for the four of them.

“So, what do you two usually do here?” Ana asked when herself and Reinhardt had finished up. “I don’t think I’ve been to this planet before.”

“Honestly? Sleep,” Gabriel gruffed out as he set plates on the table. “Walk, help Jack’s folks if they let us, just… relax as best we can.”

“There are other things but a gentlemen in present,” Jack snickered, getting a playful whap from Gabriel to his arm.

Reinhardt sputtered and choked on his lunch while Ana just laughed and laughed.

* * *

There was always a sense of peace that came with being on a planet like the one that Jack came from. It was slow setting peace, especially now. It took a day for it to do so and break through that thick layer of nerves and anxiety that had built up over the past few weeks. 

Nothing bad happened on Jack’s planet… literally. They had no major wars or planet wide crisis or anything really of note in their history besides a few scuffles that often had single digit injuries let alone casualties. They were a calm species and one that did not care for violence or acting aggressively. Not to mention the big, scaly aliens kept quite a few too terrified to attack. They were part of Overwatch’s peace alliance so that scared off a few people, not willing to bring down Overwatch’s wrath on their heads if they struck. Not to mention with how much hostile wildlife there still was, not much conquering it only to have to fight more than half the planet for whatever resources _might_ be out in the wilds.

When Gabriel woke up on the first official morning of his vacation, he felt at peace and managed to pry himself away from Jack’s limbs to get some compressed coffee cubes and make them into some hot coffee. He kept a few in sealed cups, letting the stuff stay hot in the pot for the others when they crawled out of bed. With a hot cup in hand and went to stand on the porch to greet the slowly creeping sunshine of the sunrise.

It was already warm when he stepped outside, a lizard planet after all, soft light hitting the rows of corn like crops that ranged from blues to purples to reds and Jack’s parents’ house on the other end of the house. Peace and quiet…

“Hey.”

“Morning.”

Jack’s silvery scales were skewed and clothes rumbled and hanging off of him. Jack’s tail coiled around Gabriel’s waist as Jack took to standing by him and leaning against him. Gabriel handed over the rest of his coffee, grinning when Jack made a face at the taste but drank it down regardless.

“You seem better,” Jack muttered into the cup.

“Yeah,” Gabriel sighed. “Yesterday was just rough. It’s hard to think about the nanites and alien DNA that I’m chalked full of. Of all the shit I’ve been through.”

It had taken more than nanites to string him back together after everything started falling apart. DNA, to this day that no one could identify, had filled in the gaps and while Gabriel’s papers and chits all said ‘terran’, truth be told, Gabriel was technically not human. Moira had done that and she still wanted to do that, make him more of a monster, make him a monster all the time. She was out there hunting him while his pseudo kids were hunting her.

“Hey.”

Gabriel grunted as that tail squeezed hard, bringing him out of his train of thought.

“You’re human. You’re Gabriel. You’re my husband.”

“Yeah,” Gabriel sighed before leaning back against Jack. An arm slipped around his waist with that tail. “...Have you thought about retiring here, Jack?”

“A bit… don’t want to go fancy manicured vacation planet?”

“I mean it would be nice. But if we came here you could be closer to your parents and we both know most of the planet and it’s pretty quiet around here. Talon would have to fight the planet and then the inhabitants if they wanted to get to me. Also we would save more than a pretty penny and could retire within a few more months of saving up rather then two or three more years,” Gabriel said.

“Huh… not a bad idea,” Jack said, nuzzling against his shoulder. “We get you papers to live here and you wouldn’t have to go through the arch unless you left and came back. We would have to get a steady supply of food for you, but that shouldn’t be hard. Could fix up the guest house and make it something of our own.”

“Get to watch you get big like your folks,” Gabriel grinned crookedly at his husband.

“You’d love me even when I get big and ugly,” Jack snarked.

“You’d never be ugly to me, Jackie. You’d just get big and rougher, but still be the handsome alien I fell head over heels for back in the SEP.”

“That’s super gay, Gabe.”

“We’re gay, babe.”

They watched the sunrise, slowly brightening the world with sunlight and warming away the last of the night’s coolness.

“We’re going to make sure you’re safe, Gabe. Talon isn’t going to get their hands on you again. You’re safe, you’re going to be being safe,” Jack said. “Hanzo, McCree, Genji, Zenyatta and Sombra… they’re skilled and they want to get the job done. You can relax. You’re struggles are over and all you gotta do is relax and stay safe. Our story is over, hubby.”

Gabriel sighed but gave Jack a smile.

“Yeah, guess so. Now we get to look forward to growing old and being boring.”

“I’ll take boring,” Jack deadpanned but gave him a kiss. “We’re old Gabe. We get to be boring.”

Gabriel chuckled, looking out at the sunrise.

“Old soldiers get to retire after all, huh.”

“Yep.”

The two old soldiers watched the sunrise and enjoyed the peace and quiet.

* * *

Epilogue…

* * *

“Guess who has three thumbs and just made the best damned arrest in a long time?” Jesse smiled as he dragged a slightly bruised Moira behind him off the ship to the crowd waiting them. Lifting his hands to point his thumbs at himself dragged Moira’s hand with them, the charged cuff humming sharply and only making it more comedic. “This guy.”

“Excellent, Agent McCree, please take Moira in for processing,” Athena chimed as the crowd cheered them on as they stepped off the ship. Hanzo, Genji and Zenyatta came with them as they went to go through decontamination, ever glad that the mission was over as the brothers lead a very irate Akande after McCree and Moira and Zenyatta kept a discord orb aimed at his head. “And please take note, Moira and Akande. Should you try anything, my turrets are set to lethal plasma rounds.”

Moira sighed deeply, “Where is Agent Reaper, you would think that he would be here to see this?”

“Retired,” Jesse grinned at her as he dragged her along.

“Retired?” Moira questioned.

“Yep, changed his plans around and retired while we were huntin’ your sorry ass down, doc,” McCree explained as he dragged her through the last bit of decontamination and then started towards the lower levels of the base and consequently, the holding cells. “Now he’s all nice and cozy on this nice little planet with Jack and the in-laws.”

“In-laws?”

McCree paused to pull out his comm device, flipping through some pictures before showing Moira.

It looked like a selfie, with Gabriel holding the phone and Jack’s head on his shoulder and grinning with that mouth full of sharp, sharp teeth. In the background were two very large, very broad, and very scary lizard like people, and they waving wide and large palms with very long talons.

“Jack’s people get that big, apparently,” McCree said as Moira swallowed thickly. “Jack likes to say they get bigger but I haven’t seen them and I really don’t want too. But yeah, Gabe is all nice and settled over there. He was tellin’ me the other day that the planet just got that fancy new canon system. You know that one that can detect DNA signatures and shoot down ships before they enter the atmosphere and have a 99.99% accuracy rating? Shooeee them were some big fuckin’ canons.”

Moira decided that it was best to scrap the Reaper 2.0 project.


End file.
